Morata maintains he’s relishing life at Stamford Bridge
ALVARO Morata has insisted he is committed to Chelsea and is happy in London.
Morata was signed for £58m from Real Madrid in the summer as a direct replacement for Diego Costa, the striker who forced through a return to Atletico after never settling in three years at Stamford Bridge.
The 25-year-old Spain striker, who had a spell at Juventus, claimed comments reported in an interview with Gazetta dello Sport yesterday in which he suggested he was not content in the English capital were “a problem of understanding”.
Speaking at a press conference at Stadio Olimpico ahead of tonight’s Champions League tie with Roma, Morata said: “If Chelsea offered me a 10-year (contract), I would probably sign it.
“I’m very happy in this club, I’m very happy with everything in London. I really like London. And if I do well and improve, I can stay here more than five years. But I need to score many goals, otherwise Chelsea will buy another player. It’s normal.”
Morata was asked to clarify remarks in the Italian sports paper interview in which he described London as “stressful”.
He said: “I really like London. But in future, when I need to take my children to school, when I finish my career, I prefer to go back to my country. It’s normal.
“Now I’m very happy. When I say it’s a stressful city, I’m talking only about the traffic. I also said it’s an incredible city, with many religions and different people.” SEAN Dyche celebrated his fifth anniversary as Burnley manager with a 1-0 victory over Newcastle that moved them up to seventh.
Jeff Hendrick’s 74th-minute winner settled a dull contest at Turf Moor as the Clarets leapfrogged Rafael Benitez’s Magpies in the Premier League table.
Newcastle were in the Europa League when Dyche was appointed in October 2012, but it is Burnley who now sit just beneath the European positions.
Dyche was without injured top scorer Chris Wood, while Sam Vokes was only fit enough for the bench, so Ashley Barnes led the hosts’ attack.
The game started with Hendrick steering a half-volley wide from James Tarkowski’s flick-on inside 40 seconds, though that proved to be an anomaly rather than the first of several chances.
Corners at either end provided half-chances — Hendrick’s header being diverted wide, while Christian Atsu stabbed over.
With Barnes offering little as Burnley’s spearhead, and his support act Hendrick frequently caught offside, their best chances were coming from set-pieces as Tarkowski nodded a deep Robbie Brady free-kick at Rob Elliot.
Hendrick was in the way when Jack Cork took a shot from distance, but he was in the right place with 16 minutes to go.
Steven Defour and Cork won possession in midfield and the latter then fired a shot at Elliot having played a give-and-go to Johann Berg Gudmundsson.
The ball came back to the Iceland international and his driven cross reached Hendrick, and he controlled on his thigh before smashing into the roof of the net.