Gonzalo Higuain, Callum Wilson and Marko Arnautovic discussed
Thursday 10 January 2019 11:19, UK
Which striker should Chelsea sign this month?
Sky Sports News understands Maurizio Sarri remains determined to sign Gonzalo Higuain, while Chelsea have also expressed an interest in Bournemouth's Callum Wilson.
Phil Babb and Steve Sidwell discussed the merits of both strikers on The Debate, and also threw a third name into the hat…
Sidwell: "He has a proven record of scoring goals - Real Madrid, Napoli, Juventus, AC Milan, he's a born goalscorer. He is going to get goals wherever he goes and if you put him in the Chelsea team with Eden Hazard, Willian and Pedro, someone who will feed him balls, he would be a great addition. They spent £70m on Alvaro Morata, which hasn't paid off, so there needs to be a change."
Babb: "They definitely need something. They need a front man with a bit of steel, someone in a Diego Costa style that can lift the way they play. They have some fantastic technical players but they need someone who can regularly put the ball in the net to take them up a level."
Sidwell: "I would love to see him in a Chelsea shirt. He's an English striker who would thrive at a big club around bigger players. I think he would be brilliant and has got the pace and power to occupy two centre-halves and bring others into play. I have seen him a few times this year and he has been outstanding."
Babb: "The last 26-year-old that Chelsea bought in January for that sort of money was Fernando Torres…I think £50m is too much right now, although Wilson would back himself.
"Can he improve? Of course. And he fits Chelsea if they play nice, short, sharp passes. He has the speed to get behind the lines, but I think the fee is probably too much."
Sidwell: "I played with him at Stoke and I said then he could into the top four. He has that arrogance that he knows he is a good player. At Stoke he played wide and drifted in and got goals, now at West Ham he is the focal point and seems to love that. I think he would cost a lot more than £30m.
West Ham reject Arnautovic offer
"If it was £50m between Wilson or Arnautovic I would go with Marko, only because I have played with him and I know what he could do. He would go in and fit in the dressing room straight away and have the ego to go with it to say 'this is a big club and I can match this'. You need that. You look at most top goalscorers and they carry teams on their backs sometimes.
"I think Stoke was his learning curve and he got a bit frustrated at the start, but in his second season he got his head down and concentrated and you saw his capabilities. It took him a while to realise how good he was and he grew up a little bit as well. What a signing he would be."
Babb: "He has an edge and he's on the right side of the edge. He plays more in the system now."
