Tuesday 15 January 2019 23:59, UK
AC Milan head coach Gennaro Gattuso appears to have backtracked on his earlier claims that Gonzalo Higuain wants to leave the club.
Sky Sports News understands Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri remains determined to sign Higuain, despite concerns from the club's board.
Over the weekend Gattuso appeared to confirm that Higuain, who is on a season-long loan from Juventus, was keen to leave the San Siro, saying "when a player makes up his mind it becomes hard to convince them otherwise".
However, ahead of the Supercoppa Italiana against Juventus on Wednesday, Gattuso insisted that the Argentine striker is happy and has not told him he wants to leave the Serie A club.
"I hear a lot of rumours on Higuain, but he is training well, he is happy with his team-mates, he is happy with everyone," Gattuso said. "In this moment he is available and then we will see whether he will play the match.
"We need to understand what he wants to do, how to fix this matter.
"Either he is a great actor, but I don't think so. I see him inside the project, he gets on well with all the team. He is always joking. Sometimes he is like a radio, he never stops.
"One last thing - he still hasn't told me he wants to leave, I am still waiting. You know what I mean."
Asked how he would take it if Higuain left the club, Gattuso said he would not be offended.
"I didn't even want to talk about Higuain because for me the most important thing is this [Super Cup]," he added. "I think this is the right thing also with respect to the other team.
"I wouldn't be offended if he left. I also was a football player for many years. Everyone is different and we can't judge how in a certain moment the reasoning of a person."
