Olivier Giroud may have hoisted himself up the Chelsea pecking order following his recent international milestone. 

After his substitute performance against Croatia, the striker now has 99 international caps and 40 senior goals to his name. The 33-year-old tucked away a penalty to extend France's lead and see the game out with a 4-2 victory.

Giroud came off the bench to play 27 minutes in Tuesday's Nations League fixture against Croatia. As well as his goal, the front-man won 100% of his ground duels and had a 70% pass accuracy rating (via Sofascore).

The £6.3million-valued ace's ongoing presence in his national team shows that he is still a force to be reckoned with. Indeed, Frank Lampard relied heavily on him during the back end of Chelsea's 2019/20 season.

After the break in football, Giroud went on to score seven goals in 11 appearances for the Blues after taking Tammy Abraham's place as first choice striker.

There's no doubt about the fact that Lampard will look toward Timo Werner to spearhead the Chelsea attack this season. The new signing notched a seriously impressive 34 goals in 45 appearances for RB Leipzig last term (via Transfermarkt).

However, the Blues will of course need someone reliable on the bench and going off Giroud's international performance plus his impressive run last campaign, he may edge out rising talent Abraham.

Indeed, by comparison the £36m-valued Abraham failed to get any minutes for England during the international break and has only scored twice in his last 13 Premier League appearances.

Which striker would you rather see play back-up to Werner? Have your say in the comments below!