Gonzalo Higuain Showing Why Juventus Smashed Their Transfer Record to Sign Him

Having struggled in their last Serie A outing against Palermo a week ago, the first half of Sunday’s visit to Empoli appeared to be heading much the same way. For the opening 45 minutes at the Stadio Carlo Castellani, the Old Lady were clearly in control but could not find a way past Lukasz Skorupski.

Indeed, the Polish goalkeeper was in superb form to deny a string of chances for Paulo Dybala and Juan Cuadrado, with Juve boss Massimiliano Allegri admitting at his post-match press conference that the Bianconeri struggled to break down their resolute Tuscan opponents:

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We could have taken the lead in the first half. Empoli were pressing us hard and there were a couple of times when we lost the ball and afforded them a few three-on-three breaks. We need to be more focused because it only takes a set piece or a counter-attack for your opponents to score in a match like this.

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Their own defence held firm, however, and they eventually took the lead after Alex Sandro—who otherwise endured a poor outing—rolled the ball across the box to Dybala. The Argentina international took one touch before launching a powerful shot into the roof of the net, wheeling away in sheer delight at bagging his first league goal of the campaign.

“I needed that goal in Serie A. I think that after [Dinamo] Zagreb I’ve broken through and will be fine from now on,” Dybala told Sky Italia (h/t Football Italia) shortly after the final whistle, his goal coming just days after he found the net in the UEFA Champions League clash in Croatia.

It was a strike that broke the spirit of Giovanni Martusciello’s Empoli, with Juventus then completely dominating and one man in particular coming to the fore. Following Dybala’s 65th-minute opener, Gonzalo Higuain put on a master class of attacking prowess that ended this tie in abrupt and emphatic fashion.

Surging forward towards the penalty area just two minutes later, even a plethora of defenders looking to close him down could not deter the 28-year-old, his left-footed effort from outside the area leaving Skorupski with no hope of stopping it.

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GOOOL HIGUAIN!!! What a play from Juventus and what a finish from Pipita! 2-0 Juventus over Empoli! pic.twitter.com/EOCfSKgzM5

— ItalianFootballTV (@IFTV_Official) October 2, 2016"

It was the kind of goal that showcased his ruthless determination, collecting the ball and instantly powering towards the danger zone, his directness already adding another potent weapon to the reigning champions’ packed arsenal.

Allied with his incredible accuracy, Higuain’s performances so far in 2016/17 have highlighted just how deadly yet well rounded he has become, while his second goal provided tangible evidence of the fear and panic he instils in opposition defenders.

Empoli had possession of the ball with Juventus’ pressing much less intense than it had been earlier in the game when Marco Zambelli received a pass. Higuain quickly closed him down, and the defender immediately looked flustered, as if he could hear the theme music from Jaws playing in his head.

A woeful back pass came as a result of that anxiousness, Higuain playing the role of the predatory shark perfectly to intercept the ball, dribble around the goalkeeper and slot home for his side’s third goal in five minutes.

While it is easy to pity Zambelli or lambast him for such an error, it is impossible to understate just how much the presence of the Juventus No. 9 influenced his fluffed back pass.

Even those defenders already with the Bianconeri have been stunned by the quality of their new arrival, with Leonardo Bonucci telling reporters this week that Higuain “amazed me, he has the humility of a great champion.”

MARCO BERTORELLO/Getty Images

The striker broke a 65-year-old record last term by netting 36 goals in 35 appearances, the biggest single-season haul ever amassed in Serie A, yet has arguably begun the new campaign in even deadlier form.

According to statistics from WhoScored.com, he has taken just 3.1 shots per game in 2016/17, a substantial drop from his league-high average of 5.2 a year earlier. At the same time his accuracy has vastly increased, with Squawka.com showing that he has hit the target with 64 percent of his shots this term, up from 58 percent in 2015/16.

Yet despite scoring once every 66 minutes in Serie A so far this season, there is much more to his play than simply his scoring prowess. WhoScored show that Higuain has connected with over 80 percent of his pass attempts since joining Juventus and created an average of one clear scoring chance per game for those around him.

The match against Empoli highlighted all those qualities in abundance, as the FourFourTwo Stats Zone graphic in the tweet above demonstrates. In his 90-minute display, he took eight shots, laid on three clear chances for his team-mates and connected with 18 of his 24 pass attempts and all four of his take-ons.

Despite winning just one tackle, he also ensured that the Azzurri defence were not allowed to settle in possession, continually harassing him just as he did before netting Juve’s third goal of the game.

Frighteningly for the rest of the division, the man himself believes there is much more to come from both his own play and the Bianconeri as a team, explaining his opinion to Mediaset Premium (h/t Juve’s official website) after the win against Dinamo Zagreb:

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We’re all improving. I understand my team-mates and they understand me, even though I’ve only been here two months. We’re working hard all the time and us new signings are becoming more and more comfortable with the playing system. We have lots of room for improvement, though – we’re still at the start of the season.

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Darko Bandic/Associated Press

Perhaps that is something to be expected, given that the official Bianconeri website revealed that they handed Napoli €90 million to sign him back in July. Clearly the performances Higuain has delivered since the Old Lady handed over that club-record fee show it was money well spent.

Club director Gianluca Pessotto has been impressed by the impact of the former Real Madrid star, telling Calciomercato (h/t Football Italia) that he believes Higuain is “one of the best five or six forwards in the world.”

With Juventus having already won the Serie A title for five consecutive seasons without him, it is arguably only in Europe where Higuain can truly show that he can make the difference. The club have made no secret of their desire for Champions League glory, and it is in that competition’s latter stages where he must now prove his value.

There are many matches to come before those prestigious and important fixtures roll around, but with displays like this one against Empoli, Juventus fans will undoubtedly be keen to see what Higuain can do once they begin.