By Laura O'Leary

11th Nov, 2017 | 6:14pm

Arsenal handed big injury blow ahead of crunch PL clash with Spurs

By Laura O’Leary

Olivier Giroud picked up a knock ahead of France’s 2-0 victory over Wales, but opted to play through the pain.

According to a report by L’Equipe, the striker suffered a setback when warming up for the game against Wales but Giroud opted to continue.

He said: “I put on a strap and took one or two anti-inflammatories and it allowed me to play. ”

The French international did not finish the game for his nation and was substituted in the 73rd minute, when he was replaced by Arsenal teammate Alexander Lacazette.

The 31-year-old scored in the 2-0 victory against Wales, two minutes before coming off the field.

After coming off the field, Giroud wore an ice pack on his right thigh.

There was no official confirmation of the injury but the striker revealed that it would now be “difficult” for him to feature in France’s next friendly game.

France’s next warm up game is against Germany in Cologne on Tuesday.

Giroud has featured in 17 games for Arsenal across all competitions this season so far, scoring three goals.

However, the French international has been reduced to appearances as a substitute this season for Arsenal, and hasn’t played a full 90 minutes in the Premier League so far.

Arsenal’s next game is the north London derby against Tottenham on November 18.

The Gunners are currently four points behind their bitter rivals in sixth place ahead of the meeting between the two sides.

In other Arsenal news, Jack Wilshere made some surprising comments ahead of the north London derby.

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