Arsenal Striker Olivier Giroud Gives His Support to Compatriot Patrice Evra After Receiving His Ban

Patrice Evra has been banned from all UEFA competitions until June 2018 and subsequently been sacked by Marseille. However, this hasn’t stopped his French compatriot Olivier Giroud reaching out to Evra his support over the issue.

The former France captain was shown a red card on November 2nd after kicking a supporter he said was abusing him. UEFA charged Evra under article 15 of their disciplinary regulations, which deals with the misconduct of players, banning him from their club competitions until June, and following this action his contract with Marseille was terminated with immediate effect.

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Giroud who played with Evra in the French national team hopes he can make a swift return to football. In an interview with Sky Sports Giroud said: 

“I hope that he can bounce back. I've written him a message to send my support. We had five great years together with the national team and he has always been a leader. It's difficult to speak of what he did, but it was instinct, something full of emotion.”

Giroud was not the only person to offer his support as French national team manager Didier Deschamps weighed in on the situation. Deschamps worked with Evra in the national team and with Monaco in Ligue 1. 

He said: “The decision that has been taken is a tough one, but I'm not here to judge the decision. If I want to get in touch with Evra I will do that directly, I won't give a message here. But it's a difficult situation I wouldn't wish on anyone.”

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Evra is currently 36-years-old so it is hard to envision any team investing in him long-term. This will always be a dark spot in his career and it might take a while for the footballing world to trust him again. If and when that time comes around, he will surely be too old to be counted on to play a long stretch of arms.