Football
ESPN staff 8y

Gonzalo Higuain not at his best moment for Argentina - Edgardo Bauza

Gonzalo Higuain could be called up in the future for Argentina, but Albiceleste coach Edgardo Bauza admits that the Juventus striker was not fit for the September World Cup qualifiers. 

Higuain's weight and fitness in preseason attracted plenty of attention following his €90 million move from Napoli this summer, with even Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri admitting his record signing was "not in shape yet."

Higuain silenced his critics scoring the winner on his competitive debut for the Serie A champions in a 2-1 win over Fiorentina. 

But Bauza said he felt it was best that Higuain remain in Italy to get fully fit.

"To me, Higuain is part of our national team and I told him that," Bauza said. "But for these two matches, I spoke with him and we decided not to recall him. He was arriving at a new club and he needed to get himself in shape and do a certain preseason training to physically get in shape. 

"He wasn't at his best moment," Bauza said. "And I think adapting to Juve is going to take him a few weeks. He need to get adjusted to their demands, the new club. 

Higuain needed just nine minutes to make an impact after coming from the bench to earn Juve their first win of the season against the Viola. After that match, he told reporters: "They say I'm fat? It's best if they keep on saying that, then I'll score goals in every game."

Argentina, currently third in the CONMEBOL qualification group, host Uruguay on Sept. 2 before facing Venezuela away on Sept. 7. The team will be missing Sergio Aguero and Javier Pastore, both of whom are injured. Star Lionel Messi is set to return, but Barcelona warned on Monday that the forward is nursing a sore hamstring.

Bauza said he will consider Higuain for October matches against Peru and Paraguay.

"I decided is that for these two matches I was not going to call him up, but he is a national team player and we will evaluate him for the next recall. I don't doubt that if he plays in Juve as he did in Napoli, he is going to have a very good year."

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