Eden Hazard showered accolades on Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain due to the January transfer window arrival’s instant impact at Chelsea.
The Blues’ struggles in front of goal in the first half of the season has seen them bring on Higuain on a six-month temporary deal last month and the on-loan forward has immediately hit the ground running in the Premier League. Apart from having already scored two goals for the club, he has improved the effectiveness of the central forward role under the Maurizio Sarri’s system, owing to a familiarity with the approach with the pair previously working together at Napoli.
Chelsea ace Hazard has been one particularly impressed with Higuain, while also mentioning the importance the Argentine and fellow striker Olivier Giroud plays in bringing out his best on the pitch.
“He [Higuain] is a top striker,” said the Belgian international forward. “If we talk about how many goals he’s scored, he’s only got two with Chelsea, but you can see around the training ground he’s very intelligent. He’s not talking English a lot but he’s talking to the Spanish guys and Italian guys, and he also knows how the manager wants to play, so for us it’s great to have him in the team.
“I always say I need a great striker. When Olivier is playing it’s important for me, when Gonzalo is playing it’s important for me. What I want is for them to score goals, that’s it. We have a lot of intensity and when we have the ball we try to be in control of the game. I know the fans want us to go forward and try to find space between the lines but we try.
“Sometimes we play against compact teams so it’s hard to find solutions. I like the football we are trying to play, with and without the ball, so it can still be a good season.”
