AC Milan head coach Gennaro Gattuso insists Gonzalo Higuain has never personally told him he wants to leave the club amid Chelsea’s attempts to sign the Argentina international.
Maurizio Sarri has made it clear to the Chelsea board that he wants Higuian, who is on loan at AC Milan from Juventus, but that deal remains complicated.
Chelsea’s struggling forward Alvaro Morata had been linked with a return to Italy as part of a loan swap deal, but the Spain international prefers a return to La Liga at this stage.
Higuain has travelled with the Milan squad to Saudi Arabia for Wednesday’s Supercoppa Italiana and could be involved against parent club Juventus.
Speaking on Higuain, Gattuso said: “Gonzalo is always smiling and joking with his teammates.
"Probably something changed after the penalty missed and the red card against Juventus. I want to stress the fact that Gonzalo has never come to me to tell me he wants to leave.”
