Sportskeeda Football Awards 2016: Forward of the Year

#8 Gonzalo Higuain (Reader’s Rank: 10, Sportskeeda’s Rank: 7)

Higuain almost single-handedly won Napoli the Serie A

When Gonzalo Higuain failed to receive any votes in our reader’s poll, it baffled many of us here. For, here was a man who had broken the Serie A record for most goals scored in a single season* and had sealed a €90 million transfer to Juventus from another Serie A side, apart from playing – what can be termed – as a key role in Argentina’s march to the final of the Copa America Centenario.

Agreed, Argentina failed to win the Copa America and Napoli also missed out on ending Juventus’ run of 5 consecutive Scudettos. But it was the first time – ever since the legendary Diego Maradona helped them win the Serie A in 1989-90 – that the Naples outfit had come this close to capturing it again. That effort, right there, is what makes him feature on the list above Neymar and Alexis, who enjoyed more domestic or international success.

Italian legend Luca Toni was so impressed by the exploits of Higuain that he even went as far as saying that the former Real Madrid man was better than Luis Suarez.

“He has done something exceptional, also because he has not even played all the games. Gonzalo is from another planet. For me, he is even stronger than Suarez.” ~ Luca Toni

2016 Stats (for club and country – Games: 55, Goals: 39, Assists: 5)

*Higuain broke the record for most goals scored in a single Serie A season with 20 teams, however, he equalled the record of Gino Rossetti for most goals scored in a single Serie A season with 32 teams.