Alvaro Morata has secured a return to Juventus on loan from Atletico Madrid, with the Italian side having the option to sign him permanently next year.
When he first broke through at Real Madrid almost a decade ago, the expectation was that the precocious talent could proceed to establish himself as one of the standout strikers in world football.
While he has played for several high-profile clubs, including Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, the 27-year-old has often struggled for consistency.
Alvaro Morata has completed his return to Juventus on loan as he strives for consistency
Morata produced some encouraging displays during his spell at Juventus from 2014 to 2016
Now he will hope that a return to Juventus, where he previously enjoyed a productive spell between 2014 and 2016, will help to kickstart his career.
The Spain international joined Atletico Madrid, initially on loan, in January 2019 and is set to leave the club having scored 22 goals in 61 appearances.
One problem during his spell at Atletico is that Morata often went several games without scoring before enjoying brief purple patches.
He also found himself under immense pressure to succeed following Antoine Griezmann’s departure to Barcelona last year.
At Atletico, the striker often had several games without scoring before hitting a purple patch
Although he has impressive technique and strength, Morata’s finishing can be wayward at times and that was certainly the case during his spell at Chelsea, where he found the net just 24 times in 72 games.
Playing for the Blues, he often appeared devoid of confidence while in England, and in 2018, then-boss Antonio Conte spoke about the striker’s struggles in front of goal.
As reported by The Metro, after a 2-2 draw with Arsenal in January 2018 in which Morata missed several chances, Conte said: ‘He’s not liking this period. He has to continue to work, continue to improve.
‘For the striker it’s very important to score. In this case I repeat it’s a pity, because he had many chances to score.’
The Spaniard endured a miserable time at Chelsea, where he struggled to cope with criticism
Morata stressed that a lack of support from Chelsea fans caused him to lose faith in himself. After leaving Stamford Bridge, he told Goal: ‘I had lost confidence in myself. I was very upset by the opinion of the people in England. I think they caught me in the middle of everything.
‘I didn’t quite feel loved or appreciated by the club or the fans.
‘I had a very bad time in London. In the end I was training alone. I talked to Maurizio Sarri and he told me some things that I knew were not going to be as he had said. I was very nervous. My wife was in shock with me.’
In February 2018, Glenn Hoddle criticised Morata’s attitude in the warmup after the forward learned that he wasn’t starting against Barcelona.
Watching on in the BT Sport studio , Hoddle said: ‘Yeah, his attitude wasn’t great walking out [to the warm-up],’
The Spaniard’s problems were exacerbated by his team-mates’ reluctance to pass the ball to him, such was his torrid time in front of goal.
It was not the scenario Chelsea chiefs had pictured when they shelled out £70.6m for the two-time Champions League winner.
The move came on the strength of his performances for Real Madrid, during which Morata scored an impressive 15 goals in 26 league games. This after the Spanish giants had activated his buy-back clause of £23million to bring him back to Madrid from Turin.
His determination to play regular football drove the move, and it was very difficult to achieve that objective at The Bernabeu with Karim Benzema ahead of him.
Morata impressed for Juventus against Real Madrid in the 2015 Champions League semi-finals
He won the Champions League twice in two spells at Real Madrid, appearing in both finals
As he returns to Juventus, once again looking for regular football, Morata will be attempting to turn his career around and he can take some confidence from his initial spell at the club.
In 2015, for instance, Morata helped Juventus to reach the Champions League final as he scored in both legs of the semi-final against Real. He also scored in the showpiece against Barcelona, but ultimately couldn’t prevent defeat.
While at Juventus Morata won two Serie A titles and two Coppa Italias, and the decorated forward will be aiming for more. He also has titles from his time in Spain and England to add to as well.
Morata will hope he can get his career back on track playing under ex-team-mate Andrea Pirlo
In terms of his individual performances, though, Morata has often found it difficult to constantly perform at a high standard.
On the international stage he has a rather encouraging record for Spain – 17 goals in 33 appearances – but at club level matters have proven considerably more difficult.
His lack of consistency is evidenced by the fact that, since leaving Real in 2014, he hasn’t stayed at a club for more than two seasons.
Perhaps now, working under his former team-mate Andrea Pirlo at Juventus, Morata will be able to play with confidence and demonstrate that, in the right environment, he can be a reliable and lethal goalscorer.