FOCUS Will Higuain's arrival force Mandzukic out of Juventus?
There’s a lot in Mario Mandzukic’s current predicament which is reminiscent of Bayern’s 2013 season, when the Croatian scored goals galore - including in the Champions League final itself - only to lose out to Robert Lewandowski - who had been on the losing side at Wembley - the following season.
Jog forward two years and Mandzukic seems to find himself in the same boat, and could well end up leaving. Though the Croatian only scored 13 goals last season, Juventus fans took to him for the effort he put into every game, and his ability to strengthen the team’s cohesion.
On the surface everything seems fine, with the Croatian’s agent saying that “Mario’s role isn’t being questioned. Were Higuain to arrive… it would stimulate Mario to try even harder”.
Behind the scenes, however, the likes of Arsenal and West Ham are looking for alternatives to their current strikeforces (hello, Olivier Giroud!), and one between Mandzukic and Simone Zaza is very likely to leave the J Stadium.
Alessandro Cosattini, adapted by @EdoDalmonte
