ONE of modern football’s deepest thinkers – for better or worse – Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata has some more pondering to do during the next few days if he is to get his career back on track.
With 15 major trophies won across Europe’s three top leagues before his 26th birthday, it might seem to a casual observer that Morata’s footballing life has gone pretty well so far. And there have been plenty of highs across his spells at Real Madrid and Juventus, while even his time at current club Chelsea began really promisingly.
But there have also been issues at all three clubs, both on and especially off the pitch, with a feeling that Morata has struggled personally to deal with the pressures and status involved with being a top level player.
MORATA-ATLETICO TALKS: Chelsea fans, would you be happy to see the striker go?
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 15, 2019
A tendency to think a lot about his situation probably means the Spain international is a better all-round person than most of his peers. But at the top of world football it makes him a bit of an oddity, and has probably affected his ability to perform regularly at his very best.
In a painfully open 2017 Guardian interview, Morata talked about how feeling under personal pressure all the time during his spell at Juventus. “People think we’re machines [but] you have feelings, you make mistakes, you’re a person,” he admitted. Again this would be pretty normal for most of us, but the interview stands out painfully from the usual screen that top players erect to hide their real personalities and feelings from the rest of the world.
Most who have watched Morata’s struggles for form through the last year or more at Chelsea can sympathise with an individual in a difficult professional situation. Off pitch issues, including a close friend being killed in a car crash and his wife enduring a difficult pregnancy with the couple's twin boys, have made it more difficult to focus on his day job. In November he revealed he was seeing a psychologist to help “manage the pressure and the emotions”. This could again be quite normal in most walks of life, but football appears to be just different, and strange, whether that is fair or not.
Sevilla sporting director Caparros: "Sevilla are an appealing team for a lot of players and Morata wanted to come. We had talks but when we started talking about fees, we quickly realised that it was impossible and we gave up." #Chelsea #CFC
— Eduardo Fdez-Abascal (@efabascalUK) January 14, 2019
It looks now as Morata and his advisors feel that the best thing is to get back home to Spain, for the rest of the season at least. His camp to have now let it be known that a return to his boyhood club Atletico Madrid, with Marca saying he would be willing to take a pay cut to make a move happen.
There could be an attractive romantic return element to the move. Although Morata came to prominence as a youngster across the city at Real Madrid, he was actually first at Atletico and as a 12-year-old was a teammate of current rojiblanco midfielder Koke. Although in a first sign of troubles dealing with setbacks to his career, the young Morata famously upped and left after losing his place in the A team to Borja Baston – the ex-Swansea striker currently at La Liga’s surprise package Alaves.
Atletico coach Diego Simeone is reportedly keen to get Morata back to the club. But the Wanda outfit’s always tight financial situation, and especially La Liga’s financial and salary controls, mean they would have to let another big earner go before they can bring him onto the wage bill. There is also the issue of how the player’s sensitive nature would handle working in the notoriously tough approach to his players by ‘El Cholo’ Simeone.
At Madrid might find a way to finance the cost of Morata if both player and Chelsea reduce their expectations. Loan deal, including wages and payment to London club, cost €9m, Atletico would pay less. Chelsea would like a replacement and even an obligation to buy in the summer pic.twitter.com/uvPu4rfoZt
— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) January 13, 2019
Barcelona have also been mentioned as potential suitors, although the interest there seems less certain. An ex-Madrid player joining Barca always brings its stresses and strains, while playing an under-study role to Luis Suarez would not be ideal either. Anyway Barca’s transfer chiefs apparently are looking elsewhere.
It is noticeable too that a third return to Madrid is not really being mentioned at all in the press in the Spanish capital, despite his former team needing forwards badly. Morata still has plenty of supporters among Los Blancos fans and pundits, but the Bernabeu hierarchy appear closed to the idea of bringing him back.
The first La Liga club who considered giving Morata an escape route from Chelsea this month quickly learned how difficult it was going to be. Sevilla were looking to add a centre-forward but the Andalusians' sporting director Joaquin Caparros explained that it was just not possible.
“Sevilla are an appealing team for a lot of players and Morata wanted to come,” Caparros said. “But when we started talking about fees, we quickly realised that it was impossible and we gave up.”
Am starting the Morata to Betis on loan rumour right here – he could be latest player to refind joy of playing under Setien, and Betis might score some more goals.
— Dermot Corrigan (@dermotmcorrigan) January 5, 2019
Sevilla have instead agreed a cut-price deal with Barca to take their unwanted young forward Munir El Haddadi, who was a much more affordable option. If Morata were to rethink whether his weekly wages are really the most important thing at present, there is another club in the Andalusian capital who might suit even better.
Real Betis showed again in Saturday’s 1-2 La Liga defeat to Real Madrid that they have the midfield to dominate most games, but lack a cutting edge up front. Morata's all-round game looks an excellent fit for Betis coach Quique Setien's style of play, who is another of football's sensitive souls. Setien has also helped re-launch the careers of quite a few lost talents, including on loan from Paris Saint-Germain playmaker Gio Lo Celso and Morata’s fellow former Spain international Marc Bartra.
The verdiblancos cannot afford to pay anything close to the €9m a year Morata reportedly earns at Chelsea. But a six-month loan amid the less pressurised surroundings of the Benito Villamarin might help him feel better both physically and mentally. It is at least worth thinking about.
