Why Newcastle United signing Gonzalo Higuain would be a good move for the club
According to a report from TuttoJuve (h/t Chronicle Live), Newcastle United are interested in signing Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain, who could be allowed to leave Italy this summer.
A product of the River Plate academy in Argentina, Higuain made 33 appearances, scoring 15 goals, before Real Madrid signed him up in January 2007. The centre-forward spent six successful years at the Santiago Bernabeu, bagging 122 goals and 56 assists in over 250 appearances. ‘
In 2013, the 32-year-old joined Napoli, for whom he netted 92 goals in 147 appearances, before joining Juventus three years later. Still with the Italian champions, the Argentine has had unsuccessful loan spells at AC Milan and Chelsea in between. He has 63 goals and 16 assists in 139 appearances for the Bianconeri.
Newcastle United’s goalscoring woes
With their takeover getting approved by the Premier League, Newcastle should have funds to spend this summer. And signing a new top-quality striker should be a top priority for the club. Goals have been a major issue for the Tynesiders this term, who have managed netted just 25 times in the league – joint lowest along with bottom feeders Norwich City.
Newcastle splashed a big amount of money on Joelinton last summer, but the Brazilian has scored just once in the league so far. Strike partners Andy Carroll, Dwight Gayle and Yoshinori Muto are yet to open their goalscoring account.
The fact that midfielder Jonjo Shelvey is their top scorer with five goals tells the story of how ineffective and toothless their attacking unit has been.
Hence, it becomes important for Newcastle to bring in a quality striker this summer. And, to that end, Higuain would be a good option for the club. At 32, he might not be a long-term solution for their goalscoring woes, but would be a major upgrade on the current options at the manager’s disposal.
In the ongoing campaign, Higuain has scored 8 goals and assisted 8 in 34 matches across all competitions. Since 2008/09, the 32-year-old has reached double figures for goals in each and every season and should be able to continue that trend once the 2019/20 campaign resumes in Italy.
A veteran of 600 career appearances in which he has scored 305 goals, the 32-year-old would add much-needed quality and experience to the Newcastle United attack.
Read More
- Why Gareth Bale to Newcastle United would bolster their attack
- Opinion – Why Newcastle United should swoop for Bertrand Traore
- Why Newcastle United should try to sign Kalvin Phillips
Verdict
Newcastle United have been simply woeful in attack during the 2019/20 campaign. None of the strikers in the current roster have performed well. So the club should, at any cost, bring in a new top-quality striker in the summer.
Having said that, Higuain would be a great addition to the ranks. His experience, coupled with proven pedigree at top clubs throughout his career is exactly what the Magpies need at the moment as they look to usher in a new era post takeover.
