Even though the Spaniard wasn't in the Chelsea initial transfer plan, Alvaro Morata has proved that he can be in the same bracket with the Premier League's best strikers. The striker came to Chelsea as a replacement for the beleaguered Diego Costa who's on his way back to Atletico Madrid. The primary target of Chelsea during the just-concluded summer transfer window was Romelu Lukaku who joined Manchester United instead. After the opening seven league fixtures, Alvaro Morata trails only the top scorer, Romelu Lukaku with just a goal.
Crisis of strikers at Stamford Bridge
With Alvaro Morata injured, the Londoners have limited options for who can replace the lethal Spanish striker. The only other natural forwarder in the Blues squad is Michy Batshuayi who grabbed the winning goal in the Champions League group game against Atletico Madrid. The manager will have himself to blame for edging Diego Costa out of the squad during the summer holiday through a text message.
The other strikers who could've reinforced the champions in periods of crisis were also sent to other clubs to serve loan deals. For instance, Tammy Abraham who would've been a backup striker joined Swansea City on a season-long deal, but the club brought in no player to replace the starlet.
The worst part of Abraham making a loan switch to the Welsh club is that the Swans denied Chelsea Fernando Llorente, only to sell him to The Blues' title rivals, Tottenham Hotspurs.
However, the good news is that Alvaro Morata's injury won't sideline him, as the British media had earlier speculated. The player who tore his hamstring in the Chelsea home loss at the hands of manchester city could even be fit for the fixture against the struggling Crystal Palace.
In fact, the Chelsea top scorer updated his facebook timeline about his positive recovery. The post said, ' I have no time to lose. Working forward to recovery! Crystal Palace'.
How Chelsea will Cope without the Striker
It will be a big blow for Chelsea should the recovery of the former Real Madrid attacker delay considering that the other player who follows Morata with goals at Chelsea is a defender and only has two goals ( Azpilicueta).
However, The Blues will be lucky to have easy teams in their next six fixtures where the only tricky side will be AS Roma that Conte's side will face twice in the Champions League. The other teams are; Crystal Palace, Watford, Bournemouth, and Everton.
Another factor that will work for the defending Champions is the fact that most of its players are versatile and can play multiple positions. Despite being a winger, Pedro Rodriguez who had an impressive career at Barcelona can fill the void his countryman is leaving and score more goals. Besides, the Belgian winger, Eden Hazard is another versatile player who plays as a false number nine and reels in more goals the way he did last season. Another multipurpose player who replaced the injured Morata during the Chelsea defeat against Manchester City is Willian.
There's no reason to doubt the ability of Michy Batshuayi who has exhibited that he can find the net if he's granted an opportunity to play. The Belgian striker scored the goal that won the Premier League against West Bromwich Albion last season and this season he scored a late winner at Atletico Madrid in Spain. Besides Morata, Batshuayi is the only other Chelsea player who has managed to score a hat-trick this season.
