Antonio Conte’s Chelsea are currently front-runners to lift the Premier League title this season and have already qualified for the Champions League next season. So the manager has started planning on improving the squad in the summer and has been linked with some of the best players in Europe to add to his squad at the end of the season.
Chelsea need some attacking additions and Conte has been looking at Everton’s Romelu Lukaku for some time now but one player who is extensively linked with a move to the Stamford Bridge is Spanish attacker Alvaro Morata.
One of the most versatile attackers in the game at the moment, Morata is capable of playing as a secondary striker, a number 10 or in leading the attacking line in a number 9 role. He was influential in Juventus’ run into the Champions League final a couple of years ago and has been in superb form, even after his return to the Bernabeu.
He has 11 goals and three assists to his name in the La Liga this season but is far from the first choice for Zinedine Zidane, who is ready to let him leave this summer.
The 24-year old is not the strongest player around but his hold up play is admirable. He is an excellent dribbler with a sharp eye for a pass while his finishing abilities allow him to score goals even from a slightly deeper role. He is the kind of a player who cannot just dribble past opponents but also provide defence breaking passes, that set up his teammates on goal.
At Real, the likes of Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Gareth Bale are expected to be the first choice next season and Zidane is expected to add another big name to the squad, leaving Morata with even lesser time in the middle. So he is up for a move this summer and Conte is growing desperate for his signature.
At the Stamford Bridge, Conte has used Eden Hazard and Pedro in the two places behind Diego Costa this season. Willian has acted as the backup for all three attackers.
But Conte does not have a player who can play in this position except the quartet and is sure to spend big on an attacker this summer. And Morata is as good an option as any. His versatility will solve more than one problem at the club.
Morata can play on the wing and backup Hazard or Pedro and can also play as a support striker for Costa in games Chelsea have found it hard to score.
Though Pedro has been decent, a couple of impressive performances from Morata will push him up the pecking order so it is just a matter of settling into the challenges of the Premier League for him to realise his potential. At just 24, he will only get better and is a top-class option for Conte this summer.
