STAT ATTACK: Higuain scored more goals at 22 than Dybala
Maurizio Sarri’s hitman has already scored the same amount of goals that Luca Toni and Muro Icardi – last year’s Serie A top scorers - had managed last term, while the former Palermo starlet has plundered 13 so far.
Higuain is on his 3rd season at the San Paolo, while Dybala joined the Stadium last summer.
Who’s the best? One would probably say Higuain right now, stats say it. But an honest comparison must be made in another way, which is taking into account how many goals Higuain scored at Dybala’s age (22).
On the one hand, La Joya , 22 year, 2 months and 24 days old has already played for Instituto, Palermo and Juventus scoring 41 goals in 137 official appearances.
On the other hand, El Pipita has even better numbers than his compatriot. When Higuain was 22 year, 2 months and 24 days old, which means on March 6, 2010 he had already plundered 61 goals in 114 games wearing the shirts of River Plate and Real Madrid.
Dybala’s been having a gradual growth. His talent did not explode straight-away: he started from Instituto, and moved to Palermo in Serie B. It took him one year to settle in well in Sicily, before scoring 13 goals in Serie A last term. Eventually, he’s joined a big club like Juve. During this season, he’s not only justified his € 40 million price tag, but he has probably doubled his value now.
Higuain made his debut with a big club like River Plate before moving to the best club in the world, namely Real Madrid, at the age of 19. He was not a regular starter at the Bernabeu. He netted 10 goals in his first two years in Spain but he had his best season at Dybala’s age. He scored 27 league goals when he was only 22, and he moved to the San Paolo one year after that Benzema had completed his transfer in Madrid. Higuain, 28 today, netted 17 goals during his first season at the San Paolo and 18 last term.
During the current campaign he has 24 already, and it’s only February. Dybala is still far from these numbers, also because he’s not a classic centre forward like Higuain, but he has the potential to become even better than his Napoli counterpart.
Think what it will happen if they play together.
Lorenzo Bettoni @lorebetto
