According to reports in Italy as cited by the Metro, Maurizio Sarri has asked Chelsea to sign a striker in January, and it is believed that Gonzalo Higuain is on the top of the shortlisted players. The former Napoli manager wanted to add Higuain in the summer window, but the striker went on to join AC Milan on loan.
AC Milan reportedly paid £16.3m for a season-long loan deal, and they also have an option to make the deal permanent for the Argentine striker in the summer for which they would have to shell out £33m. Reports add that Chelsea would be willing to buy out Higuain’s loan deal and sign him in January on a temporary basis with a view of making a permanent move for him in the summer. In all of this, it is expected that Alvaro Morata would be allowed to join AC Milan on a similar deal.
Morata has turned out to be a major failure for the Blues, and he has often cut a frustrating figure on the pitch whenever he started. The Spaniard came in for a fortune and a big reputation but has struggled to score goals freely. The former Real Madrid striker often looks short of confidence on the pitch, and Maurizio Sarri as a manager should definitely be frustrated seeing his main striker’s performance.
Higuain was a success under Sarri when he was at Napoli, and the Argentine striker managed 36 goals in the 2015-16 season. Sarri has always been a massive fan of him and not too long ago he was quoted as saying ( The Evening Standard),”I miss Higuain a great deal. I miss him because he’ll keep scoring goals until the day he dies. He is a goal machine, a systematic and automatic jackpot.”
Those comments indeed portray the fact that Sarri would love to have the 31-year-old striker back in an instant and after this latest piece of news, we can expect the Blues to try and pull off a deal in January. The Pensioners have done well to remain in the chase for the title even without an able striker. Apart from Morata, Sarri has Olivier Giroud at his disposal and the Frenchman does a decent job in terms of holding up play, but it is clear that he doesn’t suit the system which Sarri wants to deploy.
As a result, the manager has gone on to play a few games with Eden Hazard as a false 9 and Sarri would know that his side are currently too dependent on the Belgian playmaker to produce every time in the attacking third.
Higuain might be in his thirties but he can still be a decent bet for Chelsea. However, his form this season hasn’t been too great with Milan. Therefore, Sarri should probably think once again in splashing big money for Higuain in January. All in all, we still think Sarri should go for Higuain given the options Chelsea have at their disposal currently.
