Date: 26th June 2019 at 7:37am
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With forward options looking less than appealing at Chelsea ahead of next season, you’d think the west London club would be moving mountains to keep a hold of the strikers they have at the club. However, that simply isn’t the case according to reports concerning Gonzalo Higuain.

According to Caught Offside via Goal, Chelsea are unlikely to retain the services of Higuain after Mauricio Sarri’s departure from the club for Italian champions Juventus.

This would be a huge mistake from Chelsea, who aren’t exactly awash with world class forwards. If the possibility does come up in this summer’s transfer window, Chelsea need to retain the services of Higuain, who despite obvious struggles at Chelsea last season, remains a potent finisher and would easily be Chelsea’s number one striker ahead of Olivier Giroud and Michy Batshuayi.

As mentioned above, Higuain was not at his best after his mid-season move to Chelsea. However, with Chelsea in such a malaise and Mauricio Sarri’s job coming under threat many times last season, you can hardly point a finger of blame towards the Argentine for his poor form. 

Given his vast experiences at the top of European football, it would be silly to look at Higuain and think last season was as good as it gets for the 31-year-old. Higuain has a monstrous goalscoring record since making his debut for Real Madrid in 2007, scoring 282 goals in 556 appearances in all competitions in Europe. His experiences trump that of Giroud and Batshuayi. With Chelsea returning to Champions League football after a seasons absence, the experience will be vital.

Alvaro Morata has left Stamford Bridge to return to Spain with Atletico Madrid, meaning Chelsea don’t have much in the way of options. Both Giroud and Batshuayi look to be the options upfront if Higuain isn’t retained, and both have failed to impress in during their time at Stamford Bridge.

Giroud did score 11 goals in the Europa League last season, however, he struggled massively in the Premier League only scoring two goals in 27 appearances. His Europa League stats prove irrelevant due to the lack of quality opposition in Europe’s second-tier competition. This can be seen by comparing Chelsea during their difficult Premier League campaign to their relatively easy Europa League campaign.

Batshuayi has also struggled massively during his time in England, only scoring 19 goals in 53 appearances for Chelsea. However, it has been his less than impressive loan spells that will worry Chelsea fans if Batshuayi is the starting forward next season. In the first half of last season, Batshuayi was on loan at Valencia, and he struggled massively, scoring only three goals in 23 appearances for the club.

While Higuain struggled last season, he is a much better option than both Giroud and Batshuayi who aren’t exactly world-class themselves. Chelsea need to make sure they retain the services of Higuain for the upcoming season if the opportunity presents itself.

 

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