5 reasons why Alvaro Morata will succeed at Chelsea

It's that time of the year again, the time when players are sold and bought like vegetables at your local market. In an era where players like Kyle Walker are being sold for £50 million, Alvaro Morata was snapped up by Chelsea for a club record £58 million.

Having played second fiddle to Karim Benzema for most of his time at Real Madrid, Morata has moved to greener pastures for a more central role and relatively more playing time.

Considered as one of the most talented and hard-working strikers out there, he has always had an impact at whichever club he has played and there's a high probability that the same may happen in Chelsea too.

Although he had a considerable amount of opportunities at Real Madrid, he was always considered surplus to requirements and couldn't reach his true potential.

Now, with the impending departure of Diego Costa from Chelsea, here are five reasons why Morata would not only succeed but probably excel at Chelsea Football Club.

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#5 Potential to score lot of goals if the opportunity is given

"Vasquez, readjusts and puts in a great ball.............. (goal!) That's what he does Morata, give him a game and he'll give you a goal." - Those were the words of the commentators on 29 January 2017 when Real Madrid won 3-0 against Real Sociedad.

Having replaced the ineffective Karim Benzema just after the hour mark, this was Morata's first appearance in a while. The clock read 81:48 when Vasquez culminated an excellent counter attack by playing a teasing ball in towards Morata who was lurking in the middle of the box.

Taking no chances, he rattled the back of the net with his head by throwing himself towards the ball at the exact possible moment, which sealed the win for Real Madrid. He'd done something in 15 minutes which Benzema couldn't do for the entire 66 minutes he played. This is an epitome of the quality that Morata has up his sleeve which can prove invaluable to Chelsea.

Last season, Morata had a minutes-per-goal ratio in the league of 88.73 and a minutes-per-goal ratio of 96.3 in the UCL. That's almost a goal every game. He has maintained such consistency despite appearing only 26 times in the league, starting 14 of them while coming on as a substitute the other 12 times.

If used effectively by Antonio Conte, Morata is a deadly weapon who can propel Chelsea to great heights.

#2 Plays more like a nine-and-a-half than a nine

He's not just about goals

These days, a centre-forward who only scores a lot of goals, is not considered to be good or complete. Clubs demand more responsibilities and roles from all players. Centre-forwards must be able to drop deep, act as a false-9, provide link up play, and participate in defensive activities too. Fortunately, Morata has all these qualities and coupled with his exceptional attacking prowess, which makes him the perfect fit for the ideal modern striker role.

He has been considered to play more like a nine-and-a-half than a traditional no.9. He's often seen helping out the team in the playmaker role or playing more like a second striker for parts of the game. He can be deployed either as a false-9 to support the wingers or like an advanced striker in which he uses his explosive pace to run off the shoulder of the last defender.

Last season in all competitions, Morata registered 5 assists, 19 key passes, 19 successful tackles, 14 clearances, 4 interceptions, and an average of 2.4 successful aerial duels out of a total 5.4 attempted. This shows his willingness to help out and get involved in the team in any way, either in link up play or defensive duties.

He also attempted 53 dribbles out of which 28 were successful, giving him an exceptional dribble completion rate of 54% which is no mediocre return for a centre-forward. All this makes him more likely to succeed at Chelsea where these qualities can be put to good use.

#3 Age and experience on his side

Silence! The actual show is yet to begin

Still only 24, Morata has a lot of time on his hands to evolve into a deadly and world class striker. Most players hit their prime between the ages of 26 to 29 so the best of Morata is most likely yet to come. After playing with world class teammates such as Bale, Ronaldo, Marcelo, Pogba, Bonucci and under world class coaches like Zidane and Massimiliano Allegri, Morata has most likely gained enough experience to get his career into full swing at Chelsea.

He started his senior career with the Real Madrid B team playing 83 times and scoring 45 goals for them. Later, he was promoted to the first team, playing 37 times for them from 2010 to 2014 while scoring 10 goals. His obvious lack of playing time saw him being shipped on loan to Juventus from 2014-2016 by Carlo Ancelotti.

At Juventus, he was deployed more like a second striker to provide support to Carlos Tevez. He sparked there and guided them to two consecutive Serie A titles, their 10th and 11th Coppa Italia titles and an UCL final. He returned to Real Madrid for the 2016-2017 season where he helped Real win La Liga and a second consecutive Champions League, their 12th overall.

All these achievements mean Morata is no newbie when it comes to knowing what it takes to win trophies and play in major tournaments and finals. With his prime years still ahead of him, a lot can be expected.

Under the excellent tutelage of Antonio Conte, the welcoming atmosphere present at Stamford Bridge and the loving fans of the Blues, Morata has the right environment and ingredients to succeed and grow at Chelsea.

#4 Will receive a more central role

Not the most important forward in the team it seems

At Chelsea, Morata will be chosen to play in a more central role, something which he couldn't do at Real Madrid. Karim Benzema was preferred more by Zidane despite Morata being more effective. At Real, most of the time Morata came onto the pitch, he had to support Cristiano Ronaldo to score goals and was never considered the main goal scorer of the team.

This will probably not be the case at Chelsea. With the departure of Diego Costa, Morata will be used as the main threat for attack and will be considered central to the team which will allow him to produce goals. All attacks will be focused on him and he will be the primary centre-forward in the team. Furthermore, the only competition he will receive is from the young Michy Batshuayi who will mostly be used as a backup.

All this will allow him to prosper because of the importance and responsibility he will receive at Chelsea. In all probability, he will also be appointed as the main penalty-taker for the team. Something he could have never even imagined at Real because of the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo.

#5 Surrounded by classy teammates

The players who will be playing with him

Playing as the main centre-forward in the team, Morata will be surrounded by world class teammates on either side and behind for service and support. Furthermore, he will be coached by one of the best coaches in the world in Antonio Conte who has won laurels with various teams and brings with him a wealth of experience which Morata will benefit from.

If Conte sticks to Chelsea's successful 3-4-3 formation, Morata will be flanked on either side by either Hazard, Pedro or Willian who will participate and support him in attacking play. Behind him in midfield will be N'Golo Kante, Nemanja Matic or Cesc Fabregas who will be linking up with him both offensively and defensively from the middle.

Surrounding the midfielders will be the flying wing-backs Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses who will be supporting him from the farther end of the flanks while also providing crosses and wider outlets.

This kind of support gives Morata the perfect stage to unlock his true potential and possibly become one of the world's best centre-forwards at Chelsea while being supported as a whole by his teammates, coaches, and fans.