Gonzalo Higuaín latest brave soul to take on cursed Chelsea shirt number

Many have tried. Many have failed.

Their bodies litter the pages of Chelsea’s modern history books.

Torres. Morata. Falcao. Sutton. Kezman. Di Santo.

(And also, hilariously, midfielder Steve Sidwell, and even more hilariously, center back Khalid Boulahrouz.)

Now it’s Gonzalo Higuaín’s turn. Chelsea’s newest sacrificial lamb has chosen to wear the No.9 shirt, just as he had done in the colors of AC Milan, Juventus, Napoli, and the Argentinian national team. (He had worn No.20 at Real Madrid).

So now the question is, will Higuaín follow in the footsteps of fellow Serie A imports Gianluca Vialli or Hernán Crespo, or will he be the latest to fall victim to the curse. Álvaro Morata, sort of a Serie A import, chose bravely to wear the No.9 when he became Chelsea’s record signing 18 months ago. Twelve months later, he was desperately switching to the No.29 to try to engineer a fresh start. But it was too late.

Good luck, Pipita!

Good luck to us all.