Despite Jose Mourinho's comments, Gonzalo Higuain links appeared in the Spanish media

So Jose Mourinho has claimed it's Wayne Rooney or nothing, but that's not going to stop the Spanish media from linking us to center forwards. I was a bit surprised to see us linked to one today though, just 24 hours after Mourinho ruled out a move for any other targets:

AS understands that Chelsea have made an offer to Real Madrid to sign Argentina international Gonzalo Higuaín. Although the quantity of the bid submitted by the Premier League club – now managed by former Madrid coach José Mourinho – has not been disclosed, ‘Los Blancos’ are holding out for a fee of around 40 million euros. The player himself has already confirmed his ex-boss’s interest in him, telling his closest advisers: "Mourinho wants me there".

On Wednesday, Mourinho confirmed that Chelsea had made an offer to Manchester United for Wayne Rooney. United are unwilling to sell, and Mou – who has already strengthened his attack with the signing of German André Schürrle – has turned to plan B: Gonzalo Higuaín.

I suppose it's possible that Higuain is correct and that Jose Mourino would welcome the Argentine striker, but his public comments yesterday would seem to indicate that it's (at best) a desire he won't be acting on. AS conveniently ignored Mou's comments while noting the Rooney bid, even though it seems painfully obvious at the moment that the only center forward we're still considering is Manchester United's Wayne Rooney.

It's also worth noting here that AS often works with the best interests of Real Madrid in mind, and I'd guess that this is what we're seeing today. If the market for Gonzalo Higuain doesn't seem to be exactly what the club were hoping for, hinting that Chelsea have interest (and have made a bid) could potentially cause another club like Arsenal to panic. It's unlikely, but with the top center forwards on the market already finding new homes, a club that really likes Higuain could decide to cave to Real's demands in order to assure they didn't miss out. I'd have to assume that scenario was a bit more feasible before Jose Mourinho more or less ruled out the possibility, but since when do "minor" details matter at all to the Spanish press.

I'm personally far less of a fan of Higuain than I am of Wayne Rooney, and with the price AS claim Real Madrid are looking for, I'd have absolutely no interest whatsoever in seeing Pipita reunited with Mou. In that regard, I'm glad that this rumor has no more legs than the Christian Benteke stuff did.