Alvaro Morata believes Chelsea a good fit

Alvaro Morata of Chelsea during the International Champions Cup 2017 match between soccer clubs Bayern Munich from Germany and Chelsea of England Tuesday, July 25, 2017 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Joseph Nair)
Alvaro Morata of Chelsea during the International Champions Cup 2017 match between soccer clubs Bayern Munich from Germany and Chelsea of England Tuesday, July 25, 2017 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Joseph Nair)

New Chelsea signing Alvaro Morata brushed off suggestions that he will need time to settle in and said the upcoming season will be important in staking his claim for a spot in the Spanish national team come Russia 2018.

Speaking to the media at an event for Ericsson at the Ritz Carlton in Singapore on 27 July, the 24-year-old said he is adapting quickly to his new teammates and shrugged off suggestions that he might take a while to gel.

“It’s normal, I had a very long travel, I was from the USA and I come to Singapore and I am training hard,” said Morata.

“I needed days for adaptation but I am good.”

His fellow Spaniard Cesar Azpilicueta echoed the sentiment saying that a player of Morata’s quality will fit in easily with the team.

“He doesn’t need much adaptation as he is a top player, he has been playing for top teams like Juventus and Real Madrid,” said the 27-year-old defender, adding that Morata will improve the strength of the squad.

“It’s going to be harder for me (in training), but I like to be with the best and I think that it will improve the whole team.”

Chelsea’s Alvaro Morata at an Ericsson event on 27 July. Chelsea are in Singapore for the International Champions Cup. Photo: Stefanus Ian
Chelsea’s Alvaro Morata at an Ericsson event on 27 July. Chelsea are in Singapore for the International Champions Cup. Photo: Stefanus Ian

Morata joined Chelsea from Real Madrid for a reported club record of £58 million. The forward came in as a substitute during the first International Champions Cup match in Singapore on Tuesday as Chelsea fell to a 3-2 defeat against Bayern Munich.

While he did not score during his debut, Morata will be expected to hit the ground running with Chelsea who look set to lose last season’s top scorer Diego Costa. Costa did not travel with the team for the pre-season tour. Costa accounted for 20 of Chelsea’s league goals last season.

But the Spanish forward is under no illusion how crucial his performance next season will be with the World Cup coming up next year.

“It’s the most important this year, the first thing is playing here at Chelsea and if I play here and I make my work well, probably I’ll come to the World Cup,” said Morata.

“It’s a dream, the possibility of going to play a World Cup,” he added.

“But I can’t think now, I only think about this season with Chelsea and I hope it’s a good full season.”

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