After banging in a record amount of goals for Napoli last campaign, Gonzalo Higuain made a move to Juventus in the summer and duly picked up where he left off - he currently has a very respectable 13 goals in all competitions and, with Juve sitting pretty at the top of the table, looks likely to win his first Serie A title.
In a far-ranging interview with"? Premium Sport, the 29-year-old Argentina international and former Real Madrid striker spoke - amongst other things - about his new club, while also naming whom he believes is the best striker ever; as if that wasn't already enough, he flipped the coin as it were by naming the toughest defender he's ever encountered.
But before that, he discussed his childhood heroes:
"When I was a child I used to watch many Serie A games. There were strikers like Trezeguet, Batistuta, Crespo and Montella but also the best striker of all time to me: Ronaldo.
"At the moment Suarez is doing so well, he's improved a lot and he's a better striker than when he was at Liverpool. Lewandowski is also a top player and Aguero too. I prefer entertaining players to those who score goals."?
Speaking of entertaining players, 'Pipita' compared a current teammate to one of the greatest players in history:
"Dybala is similar to Messi. Messi is the best and he's proving it day by day. Paulo is still young and his future is up to him. In order to become a top player, one has to be mentally very strong. There will be highs and lows, he must remain balanced, do not listen to either praises or criticisms."?
Concluding the chat, as promised, Higuain named his hardest opponent, and it's not too surprising to learn that the man cited was from Gonzalo's days in La Liga:
"The toughest defender I've ever faced is Puyol.
"When I was playing against Barcelona he was intolerable. As for goalkeepers, I've played with three of the best out there: Buffon, Casillas and Reina. Score a goal against Buffon is a double challenge because he's an amazing keeper. I admire Gigi a lot because he has the same hunger as when he was young."?