Pioli reveals how AC Milan's Giroud signing came together after striker hits Napoli winner

Stefano Pioli has revealed Milan sought to recruit Olivier Giroud thanks to his experience in winning trophies, after the France international nabbed a crucial matchwinner against Napoli on Sunday.

The former Chelsea attacker joined the club last term and has proven an inspired buy since, with his latest strike lifting them to the top of Serie A over champions Inter in an increasingly twisty title race.

Speaking at full-time, the manager has now opened up on just why they pursued the veteran forward and what he has brought to San Siro since his arrival.

"We wanted to bring in players who have already won, who know what it means to work towards important targets and people who are great professionals," Pioli revealed.

"It just took a video call last summer for us to all realise who we were dealing with.

"It remains a very young squad in general, so having someone with that kind of experience really helps."

Having moved ahead of their local neighbours, Milan sit top of the pile following the latest batch of fixtures - but with a game more under their belt than their rivals, Pioli is not getting carried away just yet.

"Inter are still the favourites because they are the reigning champions and have a game in hand," he added.

"They are a very strong team who know what it means to win.The sooner we have a table with all the teams playing the same number of games, the sooner we’ll be able to judge."