Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is all set to raid La Liga giants Real Madrid in a bid to sign Alvaro Morata during the winter transfer window. Chelsea are still on the lookout for a viable replacement for Diego Costa and are reportedly interested in securing the services Madrid player in January.
Chelsea failed to sign the forward from Juventus last season after Real Madrid activated their buy-back clause. However, according to Spanish news outlet Diario Madridista, the London-based club has not given up the chase for Morata.
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After a successful season at Turin, everyone expected Real Madrid to activate their buy back clause and then sell off the forward to a Premier League club at a profit. However, Zinedine Zidane convinced the club to retain the player in order to provide competition for Karim Benzema.
Also read: Transfer Rumour: Antonio Conte wants Manchester City reject Joe Hart
Morata started his career at Real Madrid making his senior team debut in 2010 but moved to Serie A side Juventus in 2014 after a lack of first-team opportunities for a fee of €20 million. He was mainly deployed on the left wing but still went on to score 15 goals in 63 appearances for Juventus.
Real Madrid bought him back in this season’s summer transfer window for a fee of €30 million amidst interest from several English clubs.
Although Morata stayed back in Spain, he has started most of the games from the bench. In the presence of superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Benzema in the line-up, it is difficult to secure a first team spot. He has featured in seven La Liga games this season so far scoring one goal.
Also read: Real Madrid transfer rumour: Manchester United's David de Gea linked with a move to Madrid
Chelsea are looking to replace Diego Costa in the front line with a younger striker and the 23-year-old Spaniard fit the profile perfectly. In the summer window, Chelsea signed Michy Batshuayi for €33 million from French side Marseille. Batshuayi has failed to impress so far scoring only one goal in five appearances.
Good in the air with excellent ball control and ball holding capabilities, Morata is also fast and intelligent. He fits the profile that Conte needs to lead the attack at Stamford Bridge. Given Costa’s temperamental issues and injury problems, it is not long before he is offloaded and Morata fills up his shoes in the Blues squad.
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