Liverpool to take on Arsenal for Giroud

Liverpool are ready to rival Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur for the signing of France international Olivier Giroud, as Kenny Dalglish made a scouting trip to see him play.

The Daily Mail is reporting that the Anfield boss has joined Gunners manager Arsene Wenger in monitoring the Ligue 1 top scorer from this season, though Spurs chief Harry Redknapp has also been linked with a bid.

The Reds assistant manager Steve Clarke was also present and the two reportedly ran the rule over the highly-rated forward who has helped fire Montpellier to the top of the table, although any interest is likely to be matched out of Emirates Stadium as Arsenal head scout Gilles Grimandi was also present.

However, the White Hart Lane club have reportedly been compiling a list of possible summer striker targets with Giroud on said list.

It has been a successful year for the 25-year-old, scoring 20 goals in the league so far and 25 in all competitions – a record that has brought him his first call up to Les Bleus and with intense speculation about a summer move to teams such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Spurs.

The report claims that Giroud has been rated at around the £50million mark, but his contract actually has a far lower release clause of around £13.5million.