Abhranil Roy
If you have scored as many goals in your league as Ronaldo and Messi have, you are certain to draw a lot of attention to your game and style. Gonzalo Higuain has certainly not been an exception to this, after the season the Argentine is having. He has already scored 32 goals in 33 games for his club Napoli in Serie A, and is easily the poster boy of Italian football at the moment. After having lived almost his entire career in the shadows of bigger players, he is finally making his mark and we cannot help but not admire and enjoy it.
Strengths:
Higuain is the classic no. 9, a breed that is almost dead in the modern game. He is excellent at holding up play, and thus brings the wide forwards into play effectively. Moreover, the former Madrid man also has the most number of successful dribbles in Europe’s top 5 leagues, which shows he is not afraid to take on players as well. El Pipita, as his fans fondly call him, is also extremely efficient and works very hard for the team, which makes him the perfect team player. With a shooting accuracy of 57% and having created 49 chances, Higuain has made the leap from the sub-elite to world class.
Weaknesses:
We saw it in the 2014 World Cup final, even for Napoli last season, and again in the 2015 Copa America finals — Higuain fluffs chances when his team needs him the most. It is a psychological barrier that he has in him, which has so far dented his claims to be truly the best. However, under Sarri this year, he seems to have exorcised all his ghosts, and is now channeling all his energies to ripping opposition defences.
Is he worth it?
With Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Manchester City all reportedly showing varying degrees of interest in him, the striker has certainly attracted a lot of attention. United need someone like him up front, who is not only brutally efficient but also keeps the team in shape and leads from upfront. No matter what price they ask for him, I believe Ed Woodward should bring him to Old Trafford.
Transfer feasibility: 8/10
