Max Allegri has revealed he is hopeful Gonzalo Higuain will return for the second leg of Juventus’ Champions League last-16 tie with Tottenham next week.
The Juventus manager has been without his star striker since Higuain injured his ankle in the Turin derby last month.
Higuain scored twice inside the first nine minutes of the first leg against Spurs – he also missed a penalty just before half-time that would have made it 3-1 to the hosts.
Mauricio Pochettino side eventually found a way back into the game, drawing 2-2 thanks to goals from Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen.
Tottenham will be confident of progressing to the quarter-finals, but they will know the tie is far from over given the quality Juventus possess with or without Higuain.
“He still has pain on his ankle and for Saturday the times are tight, we hope to have it for Wednesday,” said Allegri (via Goal Italy).
Even if Higuain doesn’t recover in time, Paulo Dybala will provide a significant threat for the Serie A champions.
Of course, Spurs have the ability to cause Juventus plenty of problems, as proven by their display in the first leg.
Jan Vertonghen is an injury concern for Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Huddersfield, but the Belgian could be ready for Juventus.
