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Arsenal are reportedly looking to bring in former Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata on deadline day. According to Spanish outlet Sport (via The Sun), Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has reportedly contacted Morata about a potential loan move.
There have been no further updates as of yet, however, with the transfer window just hours away from coming to a close.
Arsenal are in desperate need of a striker, as evidenced by their blunt display in the 0-0 draw against 20th-placed Burnley in their last match before the international break.
Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah both played in that game, but simply weren't clinical enough. The duo are also out of contract in the summer.
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The Gunners were linked with Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic for large swathes of the ongoing window. However, Vlahovic chose to join Juventus and was officially announced as the Bianconeri's latest signing last week.
It now seems like Arsenal could still receive a silver lining from that deal. Morata, who is currently on loan at Juventus from Atletico Madrid, is likely to lose his place in the starting XI due to Vlahovic's arrival. The former Chelsea striker could in turn be inclined towards a move away from Turin.
Reports linked Morata with a loan move to Barcelona earlier this month. However, Atletico are unlikely to allow the 29-year-old to join a direct domestic rival. The Blaugrana have since shifted their focus to out-of-favor Arsenal forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Aubameyang is reportedly close to agreeing a loan move to join Barcelona, which could see the Gunners complete the transfer see-saw by bringing in Morata.
Arsenal target Alvaro Morata struggled in the Premier League with Chelsea
While Arsenal sorely require a striker, there are still doubts over whether Morata would be the ideal signing for the club. The Spaniard never really settled in the Premier League when he played for Chelsea and recorded fairly underwhelming numbers.
Morata joined the Blues from Real Madrid in the summer of 2017 for a then-club-record fee of around £60 million. He made 48 appearances across all competitions in his debut season at Stamford Bridge, scoring just 15 goals. This included only 11 strikes in 31 league fixtures.
The striker managed nine more goals in 24 matches (all comps.) for Chelsea in the first half of the 2018-19 campaign before being loaned out to Atletico Madrid. Morata looked much better in the second half of the season, which saw the Rojiblancos sign him on a permanent deal.
After just one full season at the Wanda Metropolitano, the Spaniard was loaned out once again, this time to Juventus. Morata scored 20 goals in 44 appearances for the Old Lady across all competitions during the 2020-21 campaign. However, his numbers have suffered a steep decline yet again this season, as he has scored just eight times in 29 matches (all comps).
