This past weekend saw two Chelsea attacking players pledge their allegiance to Chelsea FC for the immediate future. Both Eden Hazard and Alvaro Morata were heavily linked with a move out of Stamford Bridge this summer, but both have stated that they are staying put for now.
The transfer window has now closed in England and Italy, but it remains open until the end of the month in Spain, Germany, France and a few other European countries. Regarding Hazard, we already covered his situation and his remarks yesterday (at this link). As for Morata, the 2017 summer acquisition from Real Madrid elaborated on his club future thusly:
“I can go back to Spain or Italy. The people believe in me there but I want to change all the things here. I want to do it not against for the haters, but me and for Chelsea to do well.”
Morata has essentially been a bust in west London, and given his high price (£60 million transfer fee), the expectations for him are/were very high. As you can imagine, criticism, both deserved and undeserved as been in long supply, so that’s probably what he’s referring to with “the haters.” The Spaniard went on to outline his ambitions at the club for this season, and declare his intentions to put down personal roots in the region.
“Chelsea gave me everything in one moment that I needed. Now I think I have a lot of time to give back to the club,” Morata continued. “I can’t wait for the trophies and to play. I want to score more than 30 goals. But I said before I prefer to score 15 or 20 and get the Premier League title, or one big trophy.”
“I’m looking to buy a house here and I can’t wait for the babies to grow up to put into school. I’m very happy and it’s just the beginning of the new season, I can’t think about being not happy. I want to change all the thinking about the people, it’s the only reason that I stay here. Chelsea gave me the chance to stay here.”
“If Chelsea say ‘You are not in our plans,’ I move but if Chelsea want you I think every player wants to stay at Chelsea.”
Alvaro Morata and Chelsea defeated Arsenal in a London derby this past weekend. Next weekend they travel to Newcastle United.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, is currently a regular contributor to SB Nation, WGN CLTV and Chicago Now.
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