Striker Alvaro Morata Wanted Juventus Stay but Is Happy at Chelsea

Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata has said he would "have never left Italy" and Juventus were it not for the fact former club Real Madrid forced his hand, noting Turin was where he arrived "as a boy and left as a real player."

Morata moved to Juve in 2014 after struggling to find a place at Real, and it was only when Los Blancos used a buy-back clause in his contract that he departed.

Speaking to Italian daily Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia), he said:

“Why I chose to return to Real Madrid? Because there were contractual agreements that needed to be respected. The disappointment was enormous: I found myself back to square one. They treated me like the boy I was before my two seasons in Italy.

“Juve's trademark? A winning mentality and great professionalism. My two seasons at Juve were great.

“I went there as a boy and left as a real player. For a Spaniard, Italy is the best country to live in.

“You have everything: beauty, history, art, cooking, fashion. I'd have never left Italy and Juve.”

Morata also noted he likely wouldn't stay long in London (via Pro Soccer Talk's Joe Prince-Wright):

"I’m fine. I live in downtown Chelsea. London fascinates me with its multi-ethnicity, the coexistence of cultures and religions, but I do not see myself living here for very long. Too much, too much stress, too many metropolises."

However, Morata changed his tune on Monday, saying he's happy at Chelsea and "would sign a 10-year contract" with the club if offered, per Kaveh Solhekol of Sky Sports. Morata also told reporters his comments were taken out of context, saying that when he finishes his career, he'd like to live in Spain and that's what he was referring to. 

Dominic Fifield of the Guardian revealed Morata's follow-up statement:

“If Chelsea proposed me 10 years I’d probably sign that too. I’m happy with this club, in this city, with everything in London. I really like London and probably, if I make good and improve, probably I can stay here more than five years. But I need to score many goals otherwise Chelsea will buy another player. It’s normal.

“We have a communication problem with this interview. I wanted to say, probably in the future when I finish in my career, I won’t live in London. But now, at the moment, I’m very happy in London and enjoy living in London with my wife.

"In the future, when I need to bring my child to school, or when I finish my career, I’d prefer to come back to my country. It’s normal. I prefer the place I was born. But now I’m very happy. When I say it’s a stressful city, I’m only talking about the traffic and that there are a lot of people there. But it’s an incredible city with many religions and many kinds of different people, so I really enjoy London.”

The 25-year-old has made a bright start to his Chelsea career and has six goals in nine Premier League appearances, but Bleacher Report's Adam Digby recently highlighted it was in Italy that he developed into the star he is today:

Morata got his first taste of consistent senior football at a top club while in Turin, but there were reports prior to his 2016 return to Madrid that he was being shipped back purely to be sold for a profit, as noted by AS (h/t Spencer Morgan and Simon Jones for the Daily Mail).

He ended up remaining at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu for the 2016-17 campaign and scored 20 times in 43 appearances for Real, more than double his previous best in their colours.

ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan noted the Spaniards could well be missing their man this term:

Rob Guest of football.London provided more quotes from Morata's interview, where he picked out former Juve manager Antonio Conte as a major catalyst behind his Chelsea move, as well as the club's Spanish contingent.

Morata had long been seen as one of Spain and Europe's top emerging forward prospects long before he came to west London, but Sky Sports Statto recently hinted it may be the Blues who are witnessing his best:

The striker's comments could cause some concern at Stamford Bridge, considering just how fondly Morata remembers his time at the Old Lady—not to mention how enamoured he seems to be with the Italian lifestyle.

A contract until 2022 provides the Premier League giants with some security in the matter, although there is a sense Morata has some unfinished business in Serie A.