Arsenal: Gonzalo Higuain Has Nothing On Giroud

Arsenal have long been linked with Gonzalo Higuain, ever since he first left Real Madrid in 2013. But what does he actually offer that Giroud doesn’t?

Gonzalo Higuain was supposed to come to Arsenal back in 2013. It was in the bag (just like Vardy). However, Napoli pipped in and nabbed the Argentine striker, leaving Arsenal with Giroud and Lukas Podolski. Had we landed Higuain then, I have no doubt that by now, he would be producing for the Gunners.

But things turned out differently. Two very average seasons at Napoli later and Higuain has finally had a monster year. Having amassed just 35 goals in 59 starts (5206 minutes) the past two years prior to this season (not a bad clip), Higuain went ham, amassing 36 in 35 this year.

It’s enough to make your eyes widen. But it should not be enough to crack open the wallet. Arsene Wenger knows better than to invest in someone who has never been able to link consistent seasons. Even going back to Real Madrid, Higuain was never able to land consistent time or consistent goals. There was no rhyme or reason to his production.

Sounds like Olivier Giroud.

In the past two years, Giroud has amassed 36 goals in 54 matches (4836 minutes) against the best in the world (EPL plus Champions League).

If you’re a forward thinker and you’re already comparing those numbers, good work. Giroud scored a goal every 134 minutes for Arsenal these past two years. Higuain’s previous two before this one only gave him a goal every 148 minutes. Even with his massive year this year, Higuain’s clip falls to 116 minutes between goals.

It’s really not that much of a difference, especially when considering the competition. Serie A is no Premier League and it is certainly no Champions League. Which, by the way, Higuain has not been in Champions League play since 2013.

In fact, against the other three teams that finished in the top four of Serie A, Higuain only totaled three goals in six games. Against the bottom five in the table, Higuain scored 12 of his 36 goals – a cool 33%. He accounted for 67% of Napoli’s goals against these lower tier sides.

And we called Giroud a bully of the bottom teams? There are no Frosinone’s in England to pad the stats with. Even this year, arguably Giroud’s worst year, he still put two up against City, one against Bayern Munich, three in a crucial match against Olympiakos, a goal and an assist against Leicester and two more against Liverpool.

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Higuain put up just one multi-goal game against a top four team this year – Inter.

Even in Higuain’s big year, there is still too much evidence to suggest that he would not make it against the best in the world. At 28 years of age, it would take him several years to get settled, just enough time for him to hit 30 and start declining.

As our time with Olivier Giroud will tell us, strikers of the Frenchman’s ilk find it tough to maintain consistency. They rely on strength and physicality to make space in the box and score goals. Without that strength, they have very little.

Higuain is of the same ilk. He doesn’t have pace. He isn’t going to outrun any defenses. He is going to need to rely on his strength and quite frankly, I’d take Giroud in a muscle match between the two.

Not only that, but Higuain is going to cost an obnoxious amount of money if Arsenal truly want him, which I doubt that they do. Thankfully.

Next: 5 Reasons Xhaka Takes The Decade Cake

Save your passion for strikers that are worth it, Arsenal supporters. Higuain has absolutely nothing on Giroud. Let him go to Liverpool, which he won’t anyway.

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