Olivier Giroud has lifted the lid on his conversation with Thomas Tuchel where he told his manager he wanted to leave Chelsea.
Giroud, 34, called time on his three-and-a-half year spell with the Blues this summer to join AC Milan for a cut-price fee of £1.6million.
The France striker won the FA Cup, Europa League and Champions League during his time at Stamford Bridge but gradually fell further down the pecking order under managers Frank Lampard and Tuchel.
Giroud made just 17 Premier League appearances during his final season with Chelsea due to the presence of Timo Werner and Kai Havertz in the side.
He came to the realisation he would have to make the "obvious choice" to leave and held showdown talks with Tuchel towards the end of the campaign.
"I liked the Premier League, but at some point, I had to make a decision," Giroud told French outlet Telefoot . "I told Tuchel that the last three months had been too difficult.
"It was an obvious choice to leave Chelsea, I moved on with great emotion for all the moments we experienced. Some were good, some others not so much, but we won three important titles."
Giroud's impact for Milan has been limited by pain in his lower back which ruled him out for a number of Serie A games.
But he has still managed two goals in his three domestic appearances for the Italian giants, while he made an appearance off the bench during the Champions League clash with Liverpool earlier this month.
Giroud is vying for minutes with Swedish icon Zlatan Ibrahimovic, whom he hailed as a "legend" as he set himself a goalscoring target.
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"Zlatan is a legend and there will be a real competition between us," added Giroud. "I can score at least 15 goals, that’s what I hope. If I play every game, that’s what I expect.
"I hope [to win Serie A], we have the quality and young players. It’s a clear target we have."
Milan have started the season strongly and sit second in the table to Napoli with five wins and one draw from their opening six games.
Giroud played 45 minutes as he marked his return from injury during Saturday's 2-1 victory at Spezia.
Milan manager Stefano Pioli was delighted with the win, telling DAZN : "It's a great victory, because we played well, but not very well, and getting the result anyway shows mental strength.
"This is a young squad, but they believe in themselves, in the team and in our approach to football. We mustn't lose our humility, but it's only right they feel able to handle certain pressure and win any game.
“The pressure and expectations have increased around us this season, but we are showing that we can handle that."
