Higuain reveals that his mother’s illness prompted him to take time away from the game
Chelsea’s latest signing Gonzalo Higuain has revealed that he was close to hanging up his boots back in 2016 when his mother was seriously ill.
Higuain terminated his loan spell with AC Milan and joined Chelsea on loan till the end of the season to reunite with former Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri.
He didn’t make it in time to face Spurs in the Carabao Cup but the 31-year-old will be in contention for a starting place when the Blues take on Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup on Sunday.
And Higuain has opened up on his mother’s illness which prompted him to take time away from the game a couple of years back to look after her.
“I decided immediately that I must stop playing football so that I could look after my mum,” recalled Higuain, whose mother has now made a full recovery. “I suspected something was wrong at home during the Copa America, but it was still a huge shock when I was told the truth.
“I felt guilty because I played in that final without knowing. My whole world came crashing down at that moment. I was not interested in anything else but my mum. I told her I was finished with football and if it had been down to me I would have stopped playing.
“Her reply was that when I played football it made her happy. She told me that she would not allow me to give up something I loved. She asked me to carry on for her — and I knew I had to grant that wish.
“My family and friends are everything to me. After that, comes football. People need to understand that. They see you kick a ball and they don’t think you have anything to think about outside the game.”
