Gennaro Gattuso: Gonzalo Higuain Has Never Said 'He Wants to Leave'

Gennaro Gattuso has said Gonzalo Higuain has never told him "he wants to leave." Rossoneri boss Gattuso has described Juventus loanee Higuain as "always smiling and joking with his teammates," per Football.London's Lee Wilmot. 

Those words will cast doubt on rumours continuing to link Higuain with a move to Chelsea during the January transfer window. Wilmot noted the Blues want to secure a loan deal for the prolific striker this winter, but his parent club Juve aren't interested in anything less than a permanent move.

Higuain will see familiar faces when Milan meet the Bianconeri in the Supercoppa Italiana final on Wednesday. The striker was left red-faced after scything through his manager during a recent pre-match training session:

Nonetheless, Gattuso's description of Higuain as happy with life in Milan is also in sharp contrast to his recent utterances about the prospect of the No. 9 moving on. The 41-year-old said "when a player makes up his mind it becomes hard to convince them otherwise," per BBC Sport.

However, Gattuso also admitted, "If it was up to me, I'd keep him at my house and feed him my dinner."

Wanting to keep Higuain at the San Siro makes sense since the Argentinian is a proven goalscorer at the highest level. Higuain hasn't quite been at his best this season, but the former Real Madrid and Napoli ace has still found the net eight times in all competitions.

Milan need Higuain to continue his sojourn from Juventus because Gattuso lacks another composed and ruthless finisher at centre-forward. Andre Silva is enjoying a successful loan spell with La Liga side Sevilla, leaving Patrick Cutrone and Suso as the other options, even though the latter is not a natural striker.

Despite his obvious importance, Milan's players don't sound overly concerned about the prospect of Higuain moving on. Centre-back and skipper Alessio Romagnoli said the issue is out of his team-mates' hands:

Chelsea's need to sign Higuain is as obvious as Milan's to keep him. The Blues lack a centre-forward cool enough in front of goal to earn the trust of Maurizio Sarri.

Both Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud have struggled since the Italian replaced Antonio Conte in the summer. Sarri's lack of confidence in the pair could accelerate a deal for Higuain, provided Milan can iron out the details with Juve first.

The Daily Telegraph's Matt Law has reported Milan officials, including chief executive Ivan Gazidis, will have talks with Juventus to try and settle the issue.

If those talks clear the path for Chelsea, ESPN's Matteo Bonetti believes the Blues would get the complete striker Sarri craves:

Of course, everything will ultimately hinge on where Higuain sees his future. The 31-year-old thrived in both Naples and Turin, so it's entirely possible he's not ready to turn his back on Serie A just yet.