Nice guy Alvaro can draw from Diego’s dark art
LOVELY, polite boy, Alvaro Morata. If you wanted a nice lad to marry your daughter, he would be the ideal candidate, Antonio Conte says.
As for that Diego Costa, not so sure. But Mark Hughes is missing the Spaniard already.
As Costa left Chelsea by the side exit on Thursday, with £67million coming the other way to seal his dream move back to Atletico Madrid, his replacement Morata now becomes the Blues’ great hope.
With four goals from six games, the £65m man from Real Madrid appears to be settling in nicely. But Hughes, whose Stoke side Chelsea face at the Britannia Stadium today, claims they will miss some of Costa’s dark arts.
Conte, who told Costa by text he was not wanted, has no doubts who he would prefer to name up front.
“Alvaro is a really good guy. If you had a daughter you’d be open to have this type of person with her, to marry her. A polite person,” he said. “He’s a complete player – he’s very committed, his behaviour is always fantastic.
“He’s a good finisher, he feels the goal in every moment. He’s good at understanding which is the best position in the box to receive the ball.”
Conte did admit the 24-year-old might need to find a bit more of that gunslinger aggression Costa used to wind up opposition defences throughout his three years in English football. “When I speak about having room for improvement, it also means this aspect, to be aggressive,” he said.
“But for Alvaro, it is the right moment to be the striker in a great team. He is at the right age to have this responsibility. He is a complete player, technically strong, good leader, and only 24.”
Stoke boss Hughes agrees that aggression, used correctly, is a potent weapon.
“Costa was brilliant at taking it up to the edge, then stepping back – and it affected opposition teams,” said Hughes. “Maybe they haven’t quite got that ability in terms of getting the dark arts right on spec. I used to enjoy watching Costa play because he had an edge to him, and the reaction of other players to him was really interesting.
“That’s a skill in itself. You can take it right to the line and then step back and get other people into trouble because they haven’t got that skill to stop where they should do. He was great at it.”
Costa, who had two years left on his contract with the Premier League champions, arrived in Madrid yesterday and said: “It’s not the way I wanted to leave. I have special affection for the people at Chelsea. I’m not going to smear the image. They know the person I am.
“I wanted to return [to Atletico]. I’m not going to be ungrateful to Chelsea, where I was also very happy, playing in a team who were great. But Atletico is my home and I’m here.”
BY JOE CRILLY
CHELSEA have lost two of their last three games at Stoke but I expect them to have enough to win today.
Mark Hughes has created a decent Potters squad but Chelsea will be out to make amends for the draw against Arsenal and will get themselves over the line. They are 8-13 to win and
13-5 by exactly one goal. FEELING AT HOME: Davinson Sanchez with his new boss REPORTS FLAMES flicker from grotesquely gnarled tallow bursting forth from ornate candelabra. Hundreds more candles float majestically on shelves high above the cutlery-laden tables. The seats are crude institutional benches, while in the shadows strange thaumaturgical creatures scuttle menacingly in tanks. Giant glass flasks of intoxicating potions glow from illuminated shelving.
There is much of Hogwarts about Beast restaurant in Marylebone and on Wednesday night it was Mauricio Pochettino who was weaving the magic, offering insight into his unique managerial style.
He greeted players, coaches, analysts and medical staff as they shuffled excitedly into position either side of the single long wooden slab hosting the party.
A priceless teambonding exercise? Not on your Nellie. Dinner at Beast is astronomical. The bill for treating 50 members of staff, including chairman Daniel Levy, to the finest Norwegian crab, Galician steak and Argentine wine set the Tottenham manager back thousands of pounds.
“I invited them, so of course I paid the bill at the end,” he said magnanimously. “And when I pay, I pay good! Good restaurant, good food, good wine.
“We had steak from Spain and Australia but Argentine wine, which is the best!”
Beast’s cellar boasts a bottle of 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon/Malbec from the province of Mendoza for £160.
Food-wise, even the “lunchtime special” costs £48 per head. For that you get a 9oz steak, crab claw and chips or a House salad. Not both.
Caviar is a bargain £65, but a portion is just three-quarters of an ounce. Even a humble side order of thinly sliced cauliflower costs £10, a plate of white asparagus £2 dearer.
For Pochettino, though, it was an investment in nurturing camaraderie within the squad and, if that failed, a mercenary attempt to earn loyalty. “Going out for dinner