Higuain fine to face Genoa

Maurizio Sarri has dispelled fears over Gonzalo Higuain’s ankle injury and confirmed the Argentina striker is fit for Napoli’s Serie A encounter with Genoa on Sunday.

Higuain sustained a knock in training this week and was considered a doubt for the encounter at Stadio San Paolo.

But head coach Sarri says Higuain’s injury is not serious and the forward – who is the league’s top goalscorer with 27 – is free to feature.

“Higuain is fine, he will play,” Sarri said at a pre-match news conference. “He has trained with the team.

“It was just a bruise. He is fully recovered.”

Napoli are just three points adrift of leaders Juventus with nine matches to play, but that could stretch to six if Juve win their derby against Torino, which starts three hours before Napoli’s game.

And Sarri believes it is unfair to not have matches kick off at the same time.

“I prefer matches to all start at the same time, it is unsporting to split fixtures like that,” he added.

Juventus were knocked out of the Champions League last 16 by Bayern Munich this week, but Sarri does not believe that will have a negative effect on Massimiliano Allegri’s side.

“We do not expect anything,” he said. “We think only of us and to interpret and understand all the nine matches that remain.”