SARRI CONFIDENT HIGUAIN CAN TURN CHELSEA’S SEASON

MAURIZIO SARRI believes his ‘footballing son’ Gonzalo Higuain is already having a transformative effect on Chelsea and insists he is the perfect striker to make Sarri-ball come to life. The Italian managed Higuain previously at Napoli and in one season the striker scored 36 goals to equal a Serie A record that had stood for 87 years. Higuain scored twice in the 5-0 victory over Huddersfield last Saturday to open his Chelsea account after a poor first half of the season on loan at AC Milan, where he collected only eight goals after being forced out of Juventus due to the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo. When told that Higuain has described him as a father figure, Sarri joked: ‘I hope I am the football father! I don’t know the mother of Gonzalo. He reacts very well to difficulties. He needs confidence and a good relationship with the coach.’ Sarri-ball has malfunctioned this season as Olivier Giroud and Alvaro Morata struggled to lead the line, while Eden Hazard also toiled in a false nine position. Sarri believes Higuain is an ideal fit and that he will develop a strong understanding with Hazard. Sarri added: ‘Gonzalo is very suitable for my football. In the last match, Eden passed the ball often to Gonzalo, they speak the same language with the ball.’ Sarri admits Hazard’s future is unknown after hints that he wants to join Real Madrid. ‘I will be really happy with him if he wants to stay, but it’s up to him. I want to see him happy,’ he said.