By Mark Doyle
Striker Gareth Bale's unavailability for Real Madrid's Champions League showdown with Atletico could be blessing in disguise, the absence of Karim Benzema represents a bitter blow. Why? Because the Blancos do not have an adequate replacement. They did have one, of course - but sold him to Juventus last summer.
When Alvaro Morata scored his first Champions League goal last March, against Schalke at the Santiago Bernabeu, it looked like it would be the first of many in the Madrid shirt for a player who had come through the club's youth academy. Instead, it was his last, with Morata joining Juve for €20 million at the end of the season. See more photos below...
Consequently, while Madrid wait anxiously for updates on the fitness of Benzema ahead of Wednesday's meeting with Atleti at the Santiago Bernabeu, Morata will be getting ready to lead the Bianconeri attack alongside Carlo Tevez in their quarter-final, second-leg showdown with Monaco.
One has to imagine that Blancos boss Carlo Ancelotti would be feeling a lot more confident about his side's hopes of ending their seven-game winless run against ther city rivals if he had Morata in reserve - and not Javier Hernandez and Jese Rodriguez.
Hernandez and Jese are fine forwards but neither suits filling in for Benzema as ideally as Morata. The France international has all the attributes of a classic No.9 but does not play as a conventional centre-forward for Madrid, as his primary objective is not to hit the back of the net but to create both goals and space for star man Cristiano Ronaldo. It is selfess task, but one he is very adept at, as underlined by the fact that the Frenchman has nine more assists (44) in La Liga since joining Madrid in 2009 than Barcelona playmaker Andres Iniesta (40) during the same period. That Benzema has also netted 87 times during that five-year spell also attests to his remarkable talent for multi-tasking.
Therefore, the former Lyon man's importance to Madrid cannot be overstated, which makes the lack of a viable alternative all the more puzzling. Given his combination of pace and power, Morata appeared the ideal understudy during his time at the Bernabeu - and now even more so. Indeed, the 22-year-old has since proven himself an able foil for a more illustrious striker partner.
It is no secret that Carlos Tevez thoroughly enjoyed playing alongside Fernando Llorente last season and his preference during the first half of the current campaign was to continue alongside the towering Spaniard. However, after an understandable adjustment period, Morata soon settled in Turin and impressed so much - first as a sub and then as a starter - that he simply could no longer be overlooked by Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri.
Both Juve and Tevez have reaped the benefits of Madrid native's promotion to the starting line-up, with the pair contributing all of the Bianconeri's goals in the 5-1 aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund in the last 16. In addition, Morata created the opener in Turin with a powerful surge into the area, while Tevez teed up his young accomplice for a tap-in in the return clash at Signal Iduna Park.
Ancelotti insists that Madrid are not kicking themselves for offloading Morata, whose impressive debut season in Serie A has seen him establish himself in the Spain squad. "He’s a modern striker and plays with intensity and a high tempo," the Italian trainer told the Gazzetta dello Sport. "He’s cool in front of goal and a hard worker but we have no regrets about selling him. His move was carefully thought through. Alvaro needed to have playing time. He’s a young lad and expressed his desire to move to a club where he could play regularly."
That is undeniably true but there is also the fact that Benzema, who used to have Gonzalo Higuain as a rival at Real, has never enjoyed having competition for a starting place, which is exactly what Morata was starting to offer last season. Indeed, it was telling that Morata recently admitted that he is now happier both on and off the field since leaving Madrid for Juve, barely even trying to contain his relief at having escaped what he clearly feels is an unfriendly and unhelpful atmosphere at the Bernabeu.
"Juve brought me back to life because last year I had no confidence," he told Tuttosport. "We're not a team here, but a big family. At Juventus, there is no one in the dressing room that feels more important, even if he has been a World Cup winner or is a football legend. Here, you go to eat with everyone, talk to everyone, and lead a normal life. For me, it was amazing being able to talk about something with Gianluigi Buffon or with Andrea Pirlo. It amazes me to think that they give me a hand with everything."
Morata may not have wanted to quit his childhood club but clearly felt that he had to, given the feeling of distrust among team-mates and lack of faith in the club's striking reserves, as evidenced by Hernandez being afforded just 180 minutes of Champions League football so far this season, and Jese a paltry half hour of European action. The loyalty shown to the 'BBC' is unsurprising, given their quality and star status, but Madrid are now in the uncomforable position of having to select one, if not two, attackers who have yet to score in this season's tournament for their second-leg showdown with Atleti.
Jese is the obvious replacement for Bale. The youngster has deputised for the Welshman before and is capable of providing an attacking threat from out wide. However, Ancelotti could well go with a 4-4-2 formation against Atleti on account of the injuries to Bale and Benzema, most likely selecting Hernandez up top alongside Ronaldo, with Isco, James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos and Asier Illarmendi in midfield.
That system has served Madrid well this season, as it was employed in the dismantling of Liverpool at Anfield on November 22 and the Clasico win over Barcelona three days later (It is worth noting that Bale missed both games and that Madrid have won all seven of the matches they've played without the Welshman this season).
The derby decider thus represents an excellent opportunity for Hernandez to prove his worth to Madrid. He has averaged a goal every 105 minutes in La Liga this season - but the problem is that he does not get enough minutes. He has featured in 17 matches - yet started just two. Match sharpness could easily be an issue.
Morata could obviously empathise with the Mexican, given it was the frustration caused by a lack of game time that prompted him to request a move away from Madrid. Even then, though, the Blancos did not want to sell. But they found Juve's offer too good to turn down. Indeed, as Ancelotti underlined, the issue was not a lack of faith in Morata's ability but their inability to offer him more first-team opportunities.
Madrid knew that Morata would develop into a fine centre-forward. That is precisely why they inserted a buy-back clause into the transfer. If Ancelotti has one regret, then, it is perhaps that that he cannot enact it in time for Wednesday night.
Source: Goal
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