Tag Archives: Alvaro Morata

With the Premier League set to kick off tonight, there are more top strikers in the league than ever before, at least in terms of monetary value. Big money moves for Romelu Lukaku, Alvaro Morata and Alexandre Lacazette have seen the top clubs bolstered with more than £200m of talent – but are any of them capable of dethroning the might Harry Kane.

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Kane netted a massive 29 league goals last campaign at a brilliant rate of 87 minutes per goal. With 65% of the Englishman’s shots hitting the target, despite all of the money spent, can any of the new boys take the golden boot away from Tottenham’s main man? For me Kane still have to be the favourite and SportNation.com are offering tempting odds of 4/1 for Kane to top the Premier League goal scoring charts.

Romelu Lukaku is surely positioned best to challenge Kane, he’s already settled in the Premier League and with a hugely talented midfield behind him, Lukaku is likely to get on the end of a lot of United attacks. He was runner-up to Kane last season with 25 league goals, but with a stronger team behind him the Belgian international will be looking to justify his huge price tag and go one better this time around.

Arsenal’s big summer acquisition Alexandre Lacazette showed glimpses of his quality in the Community Shield and if he settles in the Frenchman will have every chance if Arsenal can get back to their best and Mesut Ozil can create the amount of chances we know he can. He’s consistently scored over 20 league goals in Ligue 1, but the Premier League is a different ball game, so I expect him to drop just short.

Alvaro Morata has been the headline move for Chelsea so far this summer, but it looks as if the Spaniard may take a little time to adjust to life in England.

Liverpool are unlikely to have a player that will challenge the likes of Kane for the golden boot, but what they do have is several sources of goals. The addition of Mohammed Salah has only added to their already strong attacking options which already include the likes of Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane. With all of these options and if the club can keep hold of Coutinho, they may be worth a flutter on SportNation.bet, with huge odds of 20/1 on Liverpool to win the league on offer.

Manchester City are my personal favourites to win the league and if Gabriel Jesus continues to be preferred to Sergio Aguero as the clubs central strikers, then I can see the young Brazilian being right up there in the golden boot race. The amount of midfield quality he will have behind him will see him have plenty of opportunities to score. De Bruyne, David Silva, Leroy Sane, Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling, the creative options just go on and on and that is what makes Jesus my wildcard to be top scorer this time around.

Chelsea will certainly need a striker in the summer if Diego Costa leaves. The Spaniard has refused to rule out a move to China, whilst their remains interest from former club Atletico Madrid. It did seem back in January that Costa would move on as there appeared to be a rift between the manager and himself.

Whilst his goal scoring form has faded since the turn of the year, Costa has still managed to score 19 league goals and in my opinion, when he is focused he is the best center forward in the Premier League. The question is, is he focused now? For me it appears he might already be angling for a move away in the summer.

Chelsea will face a very tough task in replacing Costa though, I recently looked at 3 possible alternatives to Romelu Lukaku they could sign.  One player that continues to be strongly linked is Costa’s international compatriot Alvaro Morata, who continues to struggle for regular game time at Real Madrid. If he can’t get that though, the question is, is he good enough to spearhead a Chelsea attack that will not only be looking to win the Premier League, but also compete in the Champions League?

Chelsea have already secured Champions League football and look the most likely to win the league, could Costa finish at the league’s top scorer and increase his value? Compare free bets and make the most of the Premier League title run in.

Morata physically looks well built for the Premier League. He’s strong and can bring others into play, something Costa also does for his teammates. But is Morata as deadly in front of goal? Considering he has only been given 15 starts (and 19 sub apps), Morata boasts a pretty impressive return of 18 goals this season. It’s worth considering that in La Liga there is the potential to ‘pad’ your stats against the lowly sides, but Morata has always had a reputation of turning up in the big games, and he has shown that at Madrid and Juventus previously. He’s also picked up 5 assists during his limited game time.

Morata has always been a player rated highly wherever he has been and that is telling. Something he has lacked in recent years is a killer instinct in front of goal but now 24, he is coming of age and becoming more prolific in front of goal.

It looks like Lukaku and Morata are the two front runners to replace Costa should he leave. Chelsea fans, who would you prefer? For me, Morata could be a shrewder purchase and he’d probably be a fair bit cheaper than Romelu, with Everton reportedly asking for £100million to sell him. A bid of half that amount would surely be enough to persuade Madrid to part with their second choice striker, especially with the Spanish giants seemingly looking to fund a major move for Monaco forward Kylain Mbappe.

There’s no doubt that West Ham need reinforcements in the summer, no matter who their manager may be. One area that certainly needs strengthening is attack. Several players have been linked in recent weeks. We take a look at three of the latest, and how realistic a move for them could be.

1 – Alvaro Morata

West Ham have approached Real Madrid and made an enquiry as to the availability of striker Alvaro Morata according to Don Balon. He was brought back to Madrid from Juventus but despite good goalscoring form, he has not been given the game time that he wants and perhaps deserves. With interest in Monaco’s Mbappe, Madrid could well be open to selling Morata this summer – but would West Ham have a realistic chance of signing him, or would it be a waste of time? Reports suggest he would cost in excess of £50million and demands in excess of £100,000 per week. Add that to the fact that clubs with European football are interested and it looks extremely unlikely that West Ham would be able to tempt Morata to the club. Especially with the way this season is finishing.

Chelsea have excelled in the Premier League this season but Antonio Conte is ready to shuffle his deck during the summer window to ensure his side remain competitive next term.

With Diego Costa’s future remaining under scrutiny, Antonio Conte is likely to enter the transfer market for a new striker as the Blues could lose the services of their Spanish forward, whilst Michy Batshuayi has failed to impress following his move from Marseille last summer.

The Sun states Chelsea are prepared to splash as much as £70m on a new striker but are debating whether to bring Romelu Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge or push to land Alvaro Morata’s signature, with the Spaniard frustrated with a lack of game time with Real Madrid.

Belgian ace Lukaku has refused to pen an extended deal with Everton and is expected to be a big mover this summer, whilst Morata is also likely to be on the market after failing to establish himself in Zinedine Zidane’s plans following his return to Madrid from Juventus last summer.

Who’d be the better fit?

With Romelu Lukaku already well established in the Premier League and having previous links to Chelsea, the Belgian striker could be the perfect fit into Antonio Conte’s side and his physical presence is comparable to that of Diego Costa.

However, Alvaro Morata would likely be significantly less expensive and is keen to prove himself ahead of the World Cup next summer. Taking that into consideration, many may feel that the Spaniard presents the best solution for Chelsea.

Signing Lukaku would be a real statement of intent from the Blues though, as they’d have to spend a club-record on their former striker, and it would show they’re happy to go toe-to-toe with both Manchester clubs in the transfer market.

Which deal is more likely?

Whilst Romelu Lukaku is pushing for an exit from Goodison Park, Everton have a decent standing in negotiations as the Belgian striker is still penned down to a contract and boss Ronald Koeman is keen to dig his heels in and prevent a summer sale.

Pushing for Lukaku’s signature will likely be a long, drawn out process and Chelsea may prefer to swoop for Morata, as a deal for the Spaniard would be easier to complete. However, negotiating with Real Madrid could result in Los Blancos pushing to land the links of Thibaut Courtois or Eden Hazard in return.

All in all, there’s no simple solution to Chelsea’s search for a new striker but they’re likely to have cash in hand to spend, as Costa is expected to seal a lucrative transfer away from Stamford Bridge and that sale will boost Conte’s spending money.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has refused to give up hope in their pursuit for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata, despite reportedly having bids rejected previously. 

Madrid signed the Spanish international this summer after triggering his buyback clause in his contract. Morata finalised a move to Spain for just £23million and it has been widely reported they want to immediately sell their new man for a hefty profit.

With Diego Costa possibly moving back to Atletico Madrid, Chelsea are looking to sign a new striker. Morata remains first choice but Belgian international Romelu Lukaku who left the Blues in 2014 has been seen as a viable back-up option if they fail to agree terms with Madrid.

Chelsea have already signed one striker this summer after securing the services of Michy Batshuayi for a fee of £33million. Although they still have Spanish international Costa in their ranks, they appear to be in the market for one more prolific striker ahead of the new season, as uncertainty remains over the future of Costa.

Morata has been on the lips of everyone this summer, he showcased his ability for Juventus last season and one performance that really stood out was his individual performance against Bayern Munich last season at the Allianz arena, there are few players as gifted as Morata and he certainly showcased it that day. Morata often impresses on big European nights and he typified the Juventus courage in their loss to Bayern. Morata single handily demolished the Bayern back line with delightful skills and high pressure, he made their defence surrender into making mistakes, which led to the forward bagging a deserved assist.

Another big occasion which Morata thrived off was in the Coppa Italia final, Morata came off the bench to score the winning goal in the 110th minute to win 1–0 against AC Milan.

A clear weakness of the 23-year-old is his killer instinct in front of goal, scoring just 15 goals in two seasons in Italy, it will have come as no surprise if many clubs didn’t want him because of that record. But, he still oozes brilliance and the goal-scoring will surely follow as he matures. He is still very young and will no doubt flourish and realise his potential as he moves into his peak years. Standing at 6ft 2′, he uses his power and pace to get at defenders and uses his trickery to dazzle defences.

Morata is well suited to many roles he is told to play in, a well-rounded forward, Morata is of course best in his natural role as a main striker, but he has superb traits in linking up play between the lines and can often drift out wide to collect the ball if needs be.

Morata has many aspects to his game, he is very good in the air and can hold up the ball with neat close control, quick feet and excellent movement sees Morata shine on the pitch, with a clinical presence hopefully to follow soon. The Chelsea and Arsenal target stood out for his energy and work-rate on the pitch, and although I have talked a lot about his lack of killer instinct, he has scored several crucial goals due to his positional brilliance.

How different is he to Diego Costa?

Diego Costa has a real eye for goal and has impressed in his short time in England thus far, his finishing stands out over Morata, managing 36 goals in 78 appearances for Chelsea since arriving from Atletico. The Blues forward has a real tendency to make a key pass and this is seen as a real strength of Costa’s play. He has an obvious weakness though and that is his offside awareness which could certainly annoy Conte, with the Spaniard’s attitude deemed lazy at times.

His stature and physical style of play which saw him settle very well in England. His style of play suits the Premier League down to the ground. The 27-year-old has strong dribbling abilities which has helped him out massively in his career, as he can also create chances for himself and not rely on his team-mates. Although he doesn’t possess dazzling skills, Costa uses his strength to glide past defenders, and when he is in form, there are few defenders in Europe that are capable of stopping him.

The real question most Chelsea fans will be thinking is can Costa play with his Spanish compatriot Morata, or will a move to Stamford Bridge open up the exit door for Costa? If the duo combine well they’d stand a great chance of winning the league. Here are the latest Premier League odds.

Both players possess unique abilities in their game and are near enough different on every level. Unlike Morata, Costa is a mean striker with a killer instinct in and around the 18-yard box. Morata drops deep and plays as number 10 at times as he is most comfortable when collecting the ball, whilst Costa often sticks between the centre-backs and looks to finish off counter attacks. Both bring different traits to their game and it would be welcomed at Chelsea as they would benefit from playing together, with Morata dropping off and feeding Costa. But, contrary to reports suggesting Costa will stay with the arrival of Morata I cannot personally see it happening.

Chelsea have just signed a very young exciting striker in Batshuayi who scored 17 goals in Ligue 1 last season. At the tender age of just 22 Batshuayi is already a mature clinical presence. He is strong and fast, similar to Morata and he’s quick and deceptive with his feet. He will love the skill and speed of the Premier League.

He has already developed into a very mature and instinctive finisher with fantastic movement in and around the penalty box – I don’t think he will be happy on the bench.

Chelsea will find it hard to fit all three players into the squad and keep each of them happy, Conte is even looking internally with Ruben Loftus-Cheek allegedly learning to play as a striker, he has previously played predominantly in central midfield.

The arrival of Morata could see his Spanish teammate depart London, Costa has come under strong criticism of late due to his “foul” play and seemed very unhappy last season. Atletico are desperate to land their former star and a return to Vicente Calderón Stadium could certainly be on the cards this summer after just two years away.

Perhaps Batshuayi and Morata could be the new strike partnership in a 3-5-2 formation for Conte?

Following the Brexit vote in England, clubs await the consequences of what this means to their future, transfer policy and overall budget in Europe. With a decision to be concluded in 2018, English clubs may possibly look to strengthen their squads this summer before any transfer policies change. One club looking to splash the cash this summer is Arsenal, as their hunt for a new striker continues into its 4^th summer. Since Robin Van Persie left the clubs for rivals Manchester United, Arsenal have yet to create a prolific striker that can carry them to Premier League success. But who can Arsenal look to this summer, and who is available? Here are 4 players that may make the cut at Arsenal.

1) Paulo Dybala

Since arriving from Palermo, the Argentine scored 19 goals in his first season at Juventus, and looks to be one of the rising stars from South America. At only 22, the striker has touted the interest of many English clubs including Arsenal. Preferring to stay in Italy, Paulo moved to Italian champions Juventus for €32million in 2015. Considering his already impressive scoring record, it wouldn’t be past Wenger to invest in a young striker. But prising Dybala away from Juventus would be particularly hard considering they also just lost Morata. On top of his goals, Dybala made 9 league assists and completed 85% of his passes. It goes without saying that he’d be a perfect fit in an Arsenal line-up that demands a creative influence from the forwards.