Chelsea star Alvaro Morata has too much class to not turn things around

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Danny Murphy12 January 2018

Alvaro Morata is having a sticky spell in front of goal but I do not see his form being a big issue for Chelsea and Antonio Conte.

Strikers can have periods like this, we have even seen it from Harry Kane in the past, and the tide will turn for Morata because he has too much quality.

I do not think the formation Chelsea are playing is helping him, though. More often than not Conte has played a 3-5-2 with Eden Hazard just behind Morata.

When Chelsea play 3-4-3 then Morata has Hazard and Pedro or Willian either side of him plus two wing-backs getting in wide areas.

That creates more space and more chances for Chelsea.

The way they have been playing, with Cesc Fabregas, N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater or Tiemoue Bakayoko, makes it tougher for Morata to shine. Fabregas is a gifted passer but he is doing it from a bit further back, and Hazard and Pedro or Willian are playing inside left and inside right in a 3-4-3 which means they are wider which helps him.

As well as that, the Premier League is still new to him and every player needs time to adapt. Maybe that great run of games he had has caught up with him - resulting in him being a tad below his best physically.

Like Romelu Lukaku at Manchester United, sometimes that honeymoon period at a new club can wear off a bit. So there have been a number of different factors rather than one big thing.

However, I do not worry too much about Morata. When I watch him it is not like his confidence has completely gone. He is such a clever footballer.

His link-up play is really good and his awareness of others is good, too, and his level of performance has not been horrendous. He is still getting in a lot of positions to score.

Top players I played with like Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen never doubted themselves when they were having a bad period.

Photo: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Owen was so driven to score goals, even when he was struggling he just kept doing the things he needed to do to get goals. I am sure Morata will be the same.

You always fancy Chelsea because of the quality they have got.

But you know with Leicester they can dig in and defend if they want to. But they can also play. They have got great attacking threat with Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy.

You would expect Chelsea to dominate possession and with Hazard in the team you know he could produce a bit of magic at any moment.

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