Maurizio Sarri Insists He Wants Gonzalo Higuain at Chelsea Next Season

Gonzalo Higuain has been less than prolific since arriving at Chelsea on loan, but that's not dissuading his manager.

Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri has insisted that he wants to keep striker Gonzalo Higuain at the club beyond the end of this season, despite his struggles since arriving on loan from Juventus in January.

Higuain has managed just three Premier League goals since joining Chelsea and was dropped to the bench for their 3-0 win over Brighton on Wednesday. Despite the striker's apparent difficulty adapting to English football, Sarri told the media this week that he wants the Argentinian to be at the club next season.

When asked if he wants Higuain to remain at Chelsea, Sarri said (via The Telegraph): "Yes of course, but it depends on the club, it depends on Juventus. It's not clear the situation at the moment."

Higuain is currently on six-month loan, but Chelsea have the option to extend that for an additional 12 months for £15.5m or sign him on a permanent basis £31m. The deal is complicated by the fact that Chelsea were recently hit by a transfer ban, with an appeal pending. 

When asked about Higuain's form, Sarri added: "I think he has to improve. He has to improve physically, mentally, but I think also he will be able to be very useful for us in the last part of the season.

“You know very well that it's not easy in the first months to play in the Premier League. It was a problem also for Suarez in the first season at Liverpool. He scored only four goals. In the second season he scored 17 goals, so it's not easy, especially for a striker, to play immediately well in the Premier League."

Higuain enjoyed the best goalscoring campaign of his career under Sarri at Napoli during the 2015/16 Serie A season and will be hoping to showcase some of that form during Chelsea's final six Premier League fixtures.