Napoli boss believes Higuain is world’s best striker
Record-setting goalscorer firing coach Sarri’s title charge
Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri hailed Gonzalo Higuain as “the top striker in the world” - but says the Argentinian can do more on his recordsetting run towards Serie A’s top scorer’s award.
“If he was a little more aggressive when going to the net, he’d score a lot more,” Sarri said after Napoli moved two points clear of Juventus and four ahead of Inter Milan at the top of Serie A thanks to a 3-1 win against Sassuolo on Saturday.
“But he’s still the top striker in the world right now.”
Higuain, who joined Napoli in time for the 2013 season after six seasons at Real Madrid, finished the previous two Serie A seasons with a tally of 18 goals (2015) and 17 (2014). Yet, in his first game of the second half of the season on Saturday, ‘Pipito’ hit his fifth brace from his last seven games to take his goals tally to 20 from 20 league games.
There are still 18 games to play, so if he continues like this, the French-born Argentina international could rewrite the Serie A history books.
World Cup call-up
The last two Capocannoniere (top scorer) awards were won with a total of 22 goals, Ciro Immobile finishing top in 2014 and Mauro Icardi and Luca Toni sharing last year’s prize with the same tally. Only the feats of Toni, who at 38 years old is playing possibly his last season with basement side Verona, can be used as any kind of yardstick.
It took Toni 21 matches to hit 20 goals during the 20052006 campaign, when the then Fiorentina striker’s 31-goal tally secured the top scorer’s prize, earned him a call-up to his maiden World Cup and, after the final’s penalty shoot-out against France, a World Cup winners’ medal. Higuain has been on fire this season, as opposition coaches have noticed.
“For 41 minutes my defenders made sure he didn’t get a touch. Then on his first touch of the ball he showed all his class,” said Sassuolo coach Eusebio Di Francesco said Saturday. “You don’t need me to explain how good he is.”
Higuain’s incentives season are twofold.
He is keen to cement his place in Argentina’s squad having fallen out of favour after missing his penalty in the shoot-out of the Copa America final against Chile last year.
Chile went on to win 4-1 on penalties and Higuain, for the second time in a month, became the scapegoat.
Weeks earlier, Higuain and Napoli goalkeeper Mariano Andujar were targeted by hardline Napoli ‘ultras’ after the striker, after hitting a brace, missed a penalty in a 4-2 defeat to Lazio on the final day of the season.
It cost Napoli a place in the qualifying round for the Champions League while Higuain’s car was vandalised by disgruntled fans.
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