What Does Juventus' Striker Reshuffling Mean for Alvaro Morata?

While Juventus supporters will rightly lament the exits of Andrea Pirlo and Carlos Tevez, there is little doubt the Italian champions have worked quickly in an attempt to lessen the impact the departure of those two great players might have.

The club has already secured the signatures of Paulo Dybala, Mario Mandzukic and Sami Khedira, with each adding quality to the squad available to Massimiliano Allegri. The choices open to the coach may increase even more, with director general Beppe Marotta making clear more new players could arrive.

"We're not lacking anything, but clearly we would seize any opportunity that were to present itself on the transfer market,” the official told La Gazzetta dello Sport last week (h/t ESPN). “There are still two months before it closes at the end of August."

While it is still unclear what type of players Marotta has in mind, Allegri will have a wealth of attacking options to choose from, and it remains to be seen the effect these changes could have on Alvaro Morata in 2015/16.

In addition to Dybala and Mandzukic, the Juventus coach will now have former Sassuolo striker Simone Zaza at his disposal, per the club's official website, while Fernando Llorente and Kingsley Coman are already at the club. The latter could yet be sent out on loan, with French newspaper L’Equipe linking the 19-year-old with a move to Lille, Saint-Etienne or Palermo (h/t Forza Italian Football).

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However, even if the youngster does move on, Morata will certainly feel increased pressure to perform once 2015/16 gets underway. After a slow start to life in Turin, the former Real Madrid star eventually earned a regular place in the Juventus lineup.

He joined the club on July 19 last year, with the Bianconeri paying €20 million to lure him from the Spanish capital, but Morata would be forced to wait until late October before earning his first start. That came away to Olympiakos in the Champions League, and his first Serie A start came the following month against Empoli, a match in which he also scored his second goal for the club.

By the turn of the year he would supplant his compatriot Llorente, however, a man he credits with helping him feel at home in Italy. In an interview with Marca, Morata revealed just how big a role the former Athletic Club star had played in his adjustment to life on the peninsula (h/t Football Italia):

"

He is a great player and a great person. I’ve been lucky enough to meet someone like Fernando and apart from admiring him as a player, he has helped me in everything and taken care of me.

He brings me to training and drives me, tells me where to eat or shop. We share a room when we’re away. He’s a great guy. He also gives me Italian lessons! I can’t ask for any more.

"

That has clearly been invaluable, and Morata’s performances in the Champions League ensured he cemented his place in the side at Llorente's expense. Vital goals throughout the knockout rounds—including the winner against his former club—saw him finish the season with 15 goals in 41 appearances, a tally he must look to improve next term.

While Dybala will clearly play a similar role to Tevez, Morata will also need to show an ability to adapt and partner Mandzukic, or he will risk seeing his role diminished. That would be detrimental to the team too, as his pace and ability to quickly transition from defence to attack has proven vital over the past 12 months.

Morata must continue to improve, to add other facets to his game and maintain his impressive progress, as he is too important to the current Juventus side to be lost in the shuffle.