So far, despite showing signs of promise, it is probably fair to say Maurizio Sarri's Gonzalo Higuain experiment has not exactly gone to plan. 

In the Argentine's defence, he joined Chelsea at a time where they were struggling for form.

Had he arrived before the start of the campaign, things might have gone down differently.

What is done is done, however, and Sarri must now look to find a way to get his Blues side firing consistently, something they have been doing of late, with Olivier Giroud offering a potential solution as he's scored 11 goals and provided seven assists in all competitions.

The France international, who is valued at £13.5 million (by Transfermarkt), has been in good goalscoring form recently and, while it is not something he usually maintains, he still manages to bring a lot to this Chelsea side overall.

And that often helps bring the best out of the likes of Eden Hazard and Willian. The former, in particular, thrives when he has Giroud to play off, constantly exchanging clever give and go passes with the former Arsenal man.

Ultimately, at this stage of the season with so much to play for, Sarri simply cannot afford to play favourites and stick with underperforming players.

Over the last couple of fixtures, it is a theme the ex-Napoli boss has moved away from by giving Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek deserved minutes in the Premier League with Mateo Kovacic and Pedro struggling for form.

That must now continue with Giroud, or else Chelsea could be in for a miserable end to the campaign.