Gonzalo Higuaín, part of the starting eleven line-up against Borussia Dortmund, will be playing the most important game of his six and a half seasons at Real Madrid. This is yhe moment of truth for 'El Pipita', at a time when he has matured and is brimming with confidence.
This is one of those momentous games that tests the mettle of great strikers and, especially for him, as from the moment he arrived at Real Madrid he has been expected to score goals in the Champions League. If that does not happen, he will be fuelling the criticism regarding his performance.
Of the four semi-final ties Mourinho's team has played in this competition, the Argentine has only once made the starting eleven. It was in the second leg against Barcelona at Camp Nou, in 2011, with the tie presenting a huge challenge due to the 0-2 result that Pep Guardiola's outfit had secured at the Bernabéu.
On that occasion, he managed to put in a goal in the 48th minute, which was disallowed because Belgian referee, Frank De Bleeckere, called a foul against Cristiano Ronaldo for a preceding move involving Mascherano.
The Champions League is Higuain's Achilles Heel. It is a competition he has struggled to make his mark in and in which he has not been as effective as he has proved himself to be in La Liga. In the domestic competition on the other hand, he has clocked up 104 goals in 185 games; an average of just over half a goal per game.
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