Gonzalo Higuain And Lorenzo Insigne Going To Barcelona And Arsenal? Don't Make Me Laugh

Oh, transfer season, you crazy.

New departure rumors are swirling around the San Paolo, but instead of them being links of the likes of Goran Pandev or Valon Behrami being on the outs, the focus is instead of Gonzalo Higuain and Lorenzo Insigne.

The newest and loudest rumor is that of Insigne, for whom a variety of English tabloids are claiming that Arsenal are preparing a €20 million bid for after the World Cup. Arsene Wenger has previously expressed his admiration for the attacker, and apparently wants to add him to Arsenal's attacking depth.

There's quite a few problems with that rumor. First off, Napoli would reject such a bid out of hand; Insigne is an important part of the squad, and replacing his role and quality would almost certainly cost more than that. Add the MASSIVE fan backlash to the local boy being sold off and the loss of the only club-trained player in the senior squad (for UEFA's squad registration purposes), and it would take a significantly higher bid for Napoli to sell, certainly higher than Arsenal would ever offer.

Even from Insigne's point of view, such a move doesn't make sense. The only reason for Insigne to move this summer would be to get more first-team playing time, particularly at striker, in order to cement his place in the Italian national team. A move to Arsenal would not accomplish that; Wenger wouldn't play up at the point of his attack, and he'd most likely be a rotation option and impact sub for the wings. If anything, an Arsenal move would hurt Insigne's place in Italy's side.

Insigne's agent saying that Arsenal would "struggle" to sign his client is a massive understatement. This one was dead in the water before it even started, with the sight of the first headlines about the "impending offer" drawing more laughter than any other reaction. If there's anything to this rumor, it's Insigne's agent playing a leverage game for a contract extension.

The other chuckle of the day comes from reports from Spain, where Barcelona are apparently targeting Sergio Aguero to add to their strike force. Should Manchester City turn them down, they apparently will turn to Higuain as their backup plan. Given that Napoli just bought Higuain for something like €36 million a year ago and would be looking for a significant profit, that would be a very expensive backup plan.

Frankly, it's hard see why either Argentine striker would move to Barcelona. Both are the star of the attack with their current clubs and are exceptionally well paid. Neither would play near as much with the Catalan giants, with Lionel Messi and Neymar ahead of them in the pecking order and neither being good enough out wide to unseat Pedro or Alexis Sanchez from their spots in the rotation. The only tangible reason for either to move is to play with Messi more often to build a better rapport for national team games, but that's an awfully thin reason for essentially a sideways move for either player.

Worry not, Napoli fans. Barring an insane offer for either player, neither Insigne or Higuain are leaving.