Arsenal have reportedly joined the race to sign Alvaro Morata, and are set to battle Chelsea in pursuit of the Real Madrid striker this summer.
Spanish publication Don Balon have reported that Arsene Wenger has set his sights on Alvaro Morata. Arsenal are, thus, set to go head-to-head with Chelsea in pursuit of the Real Madrid striker.
Morata returned to the Bernabeu last summer after Real Madrid exercised their buy-back clause in his Juventus deal. However, his second stint in the Spanish capital has turned out to be much like his first spell as the player has continued to play second fiddle to Karim Benzema.
Morata started a mere 18 games in all competitions last season in addition to a further 24 appearances off the bench. Despite the lack of regular game time afforded to him by Zinedine Zidane, though, the player impressively managed to finish as Real Madrid’s second highest goalscorer with 20 goals.
Alvaro Morata’s LaLiga record for Real Madrid in 2016/17:
14 starts ?
15 goals ⚽️
4 assists ?️Involved in a goal once every 70 minutes. ? pic.twitter.com/YfoYfnE4c0
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) July 11, 2017
In comparison, Benzema notched up over 1,400 minutes more than Morata, yet fell a goal shy of Morata’s tally. Thus, it is likely that Morata may seek pastures anew this summer in order to secure regular game time and stake a claim to become the first-choice striker in the Spain national side in next year’s World Cup.
And the Spain international does not have a dearth of suitors vying for his signature, with the likes of Manchester United, AC Milan and Chelsea reported to be interested in him. The Red Devils though, have dropped out of the race to sign Morata following the arrival of Romelu Lukaku.
Meanwhile, Chelsea remain in hot pursuit of the 24-year-old with Antonio Conte in search of a top striker after missing out on Lukaku. Diego Costa is all set to depart from Stamford Bridge this summer having fallen out with the Italian manager.
While the Spain hitman’s future is yet to be sorted, his international teammate could be the player to replace him at Chelsea. Morata is likely to be open to the move as well, having previously admitted that he would like to play under Conte one day.
The Premier League champions, though, are not alone in their pursuit of the striker with Arsenal joining the race to sign him as well. Alexis Sanchez is edging towards the exit door at the Emirates, with intense scrutiny surrounding his future at Arsenal.
Therefore, Arsene Wenger is keen to find a top notch replacement for the likely-to-be outbound Chilean, with Theo Walcott proving to be inconsistent and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain being used as a wing-back. Up front, Olivier Giroud is likely to leave Arsenal as well, meaning Wenger needs to boost his attacking options.
While he has signed Alexandre Lacazette, the report suggests that the Arsenal boss is eyeing Morata to create a formidable attacking duo up front, with Mesut Ozil in support. At 24, the player can be groomed a lot and become a long-term solution for both sides.
Don Balon claim that Real Madrid are willing to listen to offers for the player, thus, putting the ball in the two clubs’ court to table acceptable bids. It will be interesting to see which part of London Morata plies his trade in, with the two rivals keen on landing him this summer.
