Antonio Conte has been urged to sign Alvaro Morata ahead of Romelu Lukaku for Chelsea by former Arsenal striker Paul Merson.
The Premier League champions are believed to be closing in on a deal for the Everton striker, who has rejected a superior offer from Manchester United in favour of a return to Stamford Bridge.
Morata, meanwhile, was wanted by Conte at Chelsea last summer and even held talks with the Italian about a move to the Premier League.
But the Real Madrid striker has now reportedly agreed to join United, although Jose Mourinho’s side are yet to agree a fee with the Spanish champions who are holding out for £78 million.
And Merson believes Conte should revive his interest in the Spain international instead of going ahead with his move for the Belgian.
‘I would say Morata is a better fit than Lukaku for Chelsea,’ the former Arsenal striker told Sky Sports.
‘I think he is a better all-round footballer. Lukaku is a goalscorer and if you look at the stats, the running and the sprints are nowhere near in the same league as Costa.
‘Morata has played with world-class players at Madrid and Juventus and he’ll be there for the little flick around the corner from Willian or Eden Hazard.
‘You have to be bright and lively to play for Chelsea and those teams. My worry would be if Lukaku gets there, would he be on the same wavelength as those players? If he isn’t it will keep on breaking down.
‘We saw it with Demba Ba when he went to Chelsea. At Newcastle he was great in lots of space in behind to run onto the ball. As soon as Chelsea kick off at Stamford Bridge, 10 people sit behind the ball. It’s a completely different game.
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