Transfer News: Chelsea make contact with Juventus for Gonzalo Higuain

Chelsea have made advances in their pursuit of Argentine international Gonzalo Higuain, who has been identified as the desired target for Maurizio Sarri.

According to a report by Sky Sports, Chelsea have made contact with Juventus regarding star striker Gonzalo Higuain. The Argentine international has been identified as the desired replacement for the misfiring Alvaro Morata, whose future at the club still hangs in the balance.

It is believed that the newly appointed Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri is looking to take advantage of Juventus’ stunning coup of Cristiano Ronaldo in order to lure some of their key players to Stamford Bridge this summer. The Italian giants are entitled to make room for the Portuguese superstar in their stacked attacking department while also maintaining their wage structure.

While the Blues are expected to complete the move for defender Daniele Rugani, Higuain could be the final piece in the jigsaw as the West London giants aim to reshape their squad following a disastrous 2017-18 campaign under Antonio Conte.

It is understood that Sarri is keen on a reunion with the Argentine forward, who worked with the 59-year-old during their time together at Napoli. In fact, the newly appointed Chelsea manager played a huge role in Higuain’s development that saw him flourishing at Napoli, ultimately becoming one of the most feared strikers in world football.

The 30-year-old will undoubtedly be a huge boost to Chelsea’s attacking department bearing in mind that a host of their star players could be on their way out of Stamford Bridge this summer.

Willian and Eden Hazard, in particular, have been the subjects of some major transfer speculation in recent months although the latter could actually end up staying with Sarri insisting that he wants Chelsea’s strongest player to remain at the club.

As for Morata, the 25-year-old striker has failed to live up to his billing after joining from Real Madrid last summer. Despite a promising start to the campaign, the Spaniard scored just one league goal since the turn of the year, which has crept in a series of speculation regarding his long-term future at West-London.

Higuain, therefore, has a much easier shot at establishing himself as a first-team regular at Chelsea when compared to the stacked up Juventus side. The Argentine international could be an ideal candidate to spearhead the Blues next season, thanks to his proven skills and experience. And, the West Londoners have gone on to establish contact with the Bianconeri over a possible summer move.

However, the 30-year-old has been on the fringes, of late, especially after a disastrous World Cup campaign. Higuain clocked up just 132 minutes of action and was benched in Argentina’s Round of 16 fixture as they were knocked out of the tournament by eventual winners, France.

Moreover, Higuain also suffered a significant drop in his goalscoring tally last season. After netting 32 goals in his debut campaign for Juventus, the former Napoli striker scored only 23 last season, thus hinting his overall performances might be heading into the wrong direction as he enters the final phase of his career.

But, as iterated earlier, Sarri has worked with Higuain in the past and thus, it will be intriguing to see how he manages to bring the best out of the Argentine forward next season, should he end up joining Chelsea this summer.