Football pundit Andy Gray has slammed Chelsea’s Alvaro Morata, even though the Spaniard has found form during recent weeks, netting three goals in his past three games.
Morata scored a brace for the Blues during the weekend as they sailed to a 3-1 victory against Crystal Palace, which seemingly marked a change in fortunes for the Spaniard, who was strongly criticised for his performances last season. The 26-year-old scored just 15 goals in all competitions last term as the Blues endured a frustrating season.
Morata also showed signs of struggle during the opening games of this season, with some even suggesting that veteran Olivier Giroud should be picked ahead of him. Hopefully, Morata’s recent form can give him the confidence he needs to carry on scoring on a regular basis. If this happens, Sarri’s troops can very realistically launch a credible challenge for the Premier League as well as the other major trophies on offer.
Throughout his career so far, Morata has shown signs of brilliance, which was why he was formerly a part of world-class teams in Juventus and Real Madrid. However, controversial pundit Gray does not believe that Morata is living up to the potential he showed at Madrid, proffering that Sarri should look for a new striker in January if the West Londoners want to challenge for Premier League glory this season.
Gray told beIN Sports, as quoted by the Daily Star: “It’s amazing, and I’m not sure why, but Morata’s always looked, when we saw him at Juventus, when we saw bits and pieces of him at Real Madrid, he looked a player; he looked like he would come into this league and be a player.
“But he’s been a bit lightweight for me, he gets knocked off the ball far too easily for a centre-forward. He’s not as physical as he needs to be. And if you’re not physical, you need to be like Eden Hazard, you need to be that skilful if you’re going to play that high up the pitch. And I don’t know whether he’s coming to terms with the physicality of this league or not.”
