While the whole football media is speculating the future of the Argentine striker amid his transfer link with Chelsea, AC Milan manager Gennaro Gattuso confirms that he benched Gonzalo Higuain at the Supercoppa Italiana against Juventus last night due to a fever. After a challenging start, AC Milan failed to cope up with the pace of Juventus and faced a 1-0 loss.
Gonzalo Higuain is now heavily linked with the Chelsea move as his former Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri allegedly wants him in the Blues squad. The rumor became quite strong in media after the Argentine striker did not take part in the AC Milan team photo session with Saudi Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal.
Gennaro Gattuso confirms Higuain’s fever
The Argentine star came on the ground while having just 20 minutes remaining against Juventus last night. However, the manager insisted that he made the decision due to his fever and not due to the potential departure. While talking about Higuain, Gattuso told Rai Sport “He’s unlucky at the moment. He had a fever last night.”
He said “We did everything to get him better, but he didn’t play much, so I preferred a fresher player,” and further added “It might seem like a joke, but honestly, it’s true. Higuain wasn’t in the picture when the Saudi Prince came to visit because I was afraid the virus would spread among the other players, so that was my decision.”
Gonzalo Higuain played the last 20 minute against Juventus
When media pressed him about his views on the transfer speculation of Gonzalo Higuain, AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso said, “I’ve got a burning inside me, we have 25 players, so let’s not talk about this now.” The manager then further added, “We lick our wounds and will see what happens tomorrow.”
The AC Milan coach believes that his side fought extremely well against Juventus with just 10 men following the red card of Franck Kessie. He said “The team showed character and fought hard against a great opponent,” and then added, “The performance remains, but there are always regrets when losing a final.”