Alvaro Morata: I’m still in contact with Jose Mourinho – but now he’s my rival

The lure of Antonio Conte was greater, but Alvaro Morata has told Metro.co.uk he retains the utmost respect for Jose Mourinho and is even in regular contact with the Manchester United manager.

It is well documented that the Spanish striker came close to a move to Old Trafford over the summer, but opted to join Chelsea instead.

Morata revealed that, with Real Madrid prepared to sell him, there was a coordinated effort at Stamford Bridge to secure his signature. As well as Conte making contact, Chelsea transfer fixers Marina Granovskaia and Michael Emenalo were in touch to make the club’s intentions clear.

‘Antonio, Michael, Marina, all of them called me this summer and there was no chance I wasn’t coming to Chelsea,’ said Morata of his £60million switch. ‘They demonstrated to me that they really wanted me.

‘I had the chance to go to Manchester United and other teams in the Premier League. The important thing is I’m part of Chelsea and I’m very happy with this and now it’s time to fight for the blue shirt. I want to play well and win with this shirt.’

Sunday will see Morata come up against the side he could of joined when Manchester United visit Stamford Bridge. It also means a reunion with Mourinho. Considering he rejected the advances of the Portuguese coach in the summer, it might be expected it could be an awkward meeting between the pair.

But Morata holds Mourinho with great respect, appreciating the role the Special One played in his career. It was Mourinho, during their time together at Real Madrid, who handed Morata his professional debut when during the 2010/11 season he brought him off the bench for Angel Di Maria.

‘I have a good relationship with Jose,’ said Morata. ‘He was my first coach in professional football and he gave me the chance to be a professional. He made me the first contract.’

Morata and Mourinho worked together for three years at the Bernabeu, with the striker eased into the Real Madrid first-team over that period. Having given him his debut during his first season in charge, by Mourinho’s third and final season in the Spanish capital Morata was a bonafide first-team player who made 15 appearances for the club.

It is perhaps then less surprising that Morata and Mourinho remain in contact, with the pair exchanging text messages.

‘Sometimes we send messages but not speaking about football, asking if everything’s OK and some jokes.

‘It’s good and I appreciate these things because he was my first coach but now he’s – not my enemy – my rival.’

Morata now finds himself working with Conte – a manager who the 25-year-old forward says contrasts with Mourinho in many ways.

‘Antonio has the long hair, blue eyes!’ jokes Morata. ‘No, they’re two kinds of coaches; they’re different. Both are winners but different in character. It’s wonderful playing with Mourinho and winning with Mourinho now it’s time to try to win with Antonio and it’s a wonderful opportunity.’

A win with Conte is precisely what Chelsea need this weekend as they look to bounce back from a heavy Champions League defeat to Roma in midweek. The Blues were beaten 3-0 in Rome and the fall-out from the loss has led to reports of Conte reading the riot act to his players. Rumours about the manager’s future have also resurfaced.

But despite a tense air around Stamford Bridge, Morata sees the defeat to Roma for what it is. Having played for Juventus and Real Madrid, the biggest clubs in Italy and Spain, he is at ease with the extreme consequences that come with success and failure at a major club.

Speaking at the official presentation of the Big Bang Chelsea FC watch by Hublot, Morata said: ‘3-0 is a hard result but it doesn’t mean we played bad. We were unlucky, it’s not the best match for us but the Champions League is like this. I remember when I was at Juventus we lost against Olympiakos and we were in a worse position than we are after this loss against Roma. That year [2015] we arrived in the final. It doesn’t matter. The most important thing is to be in the next round.

‘Unfortunately football is like this. When we take the three points at Atletico [following a 2-1 win in September] we are one of the best teams in Europe and this week we lose against a very good team and they think the world ends. But if we take the three points playing bad in the last minute we’ll be the best team of England [again] and into a fight for the Premier League.’

Coming off the back of defeat to Roma and with Conte under pressure, a tough assignment against Manchester United would perhaps be seen as the least ideal opponent for Chelsea. Yet Morata sees the positives of being involved in such a hugely anticipated match.

‘We know our coach is a winner. It’s normal for winning you need to work hard and to pass together through hard moments and now it’s a good moment to demonstrate that we are a good team, that we have character and that we can play against Manchester United with a good performance.

‘It’s one of the best Premier League matches and we know the importance of this game. It’s a very important game for the club, for the coach and for us the players. We want to win but this match especially because if we take the three points we have the opportunity to be there and near Manchester City and United.

‘It’s important for us because we’re in November and we’ve got a lot of time and a lot of points to play and if we win and perform well we can think about the title.’

Following a blistering start to his Chelsea career that saw him score six goals in his first six Premier League games, Morata has struggled for goals since returning from an injury. It’s been six games without finding the back of the net and scoring against Manchester United would be the perfect way to reboot his season.

Morata may have only worked with Conte for a matter of months in comparison to years with Mourinho, but he already appears be absorbing the Italian’s ethic. The Chelsea manager persistently talks of the importance of hard work – and that is what Morata is urging ahead of the weekend as he calls on his team-mates to pull together.

‘We work together honestly always. Every one of us knows that when we play 100 per cent altogether we can win against whatever team but we need to work hard now and to be a team.’

Morata will hope the hard work leads to victory on Sunday and a victory over his now ‘rival’ Mourinho. But whatever the result, expect a show of respect between the pair after the final whistle.

Chelsea FC players Alvaro Morata, David Luiz, Danny Drinkwater, Cesc Fàbregas were at the Hublot Big Bang Chelsea FC watch reveal, Stamford Bridge. Find out more about the partnership at www.hublot.com. 

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