Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata’s wasteful performance against Arsenal on Wednesday saw the Spain international’s form come under the microscope, despite netting 10 league goals in his debut season in England so far.
Compared to the four players who have scored more regularly this season – Harry Kane, Mohamed Salah, Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero – the former Real Madrid attacker is lagging in several key statistics.
Surprisingly, however, Morata has a better shot conversion record than Kane, whose numbers in this regard lag behind the other top forwards in the league.
Morata proved to be wasteful when in good positions at the Emirates Stadium during the 2-2 draw, leading to significant criticism of the forward.
Manager Antonio Conte has leapt to the 25-year-old's defence, although the statistics paint a mixed pattern for the striker.
In terms of overall conversion rate, Morata finds himself significantly behind the group of strikers considered to be the leading lights in the league this season. While Morata scored 16.9 per cent of his shots, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah is up at 20.7% while Manchester City duo Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero are at 26.4% and 19.4% respectively.
Meanwhile, leading scorer Harry Kane, the Golden Boot winner in each of the last two seasons, is surprisingly at 15.5%.
| Name | Total shot conversion % | Right foot conversion % | Left foot conversion % | Header conversion % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alvaro Morata | 16.9 | 9.7 | 11.1 | 31.6 |
| Harry Kane | 15.5 | 9.9 | 29.6 | 16.7 |
| Mohamed Salah | 20.7 | 22.2 | 20.1 | 16.7 |
| Sergio Aguero | 19.4 | 20.9 | 0 | 33.3 |
| Raheem Sterling | 26.4 | 29.4 | 22.2 | 0 |
In terms of minutes per goal, Morata also finds himself off the pace. He has found the net on average once every 143 minutes, while both Kane and Salah lead the way as they have found the net every 94 minutes.
The Spaniard's numbers with his feet are particularly alarming. Morata has scored only four times with his feet, boasting a left-foot conversation rate of 11.1% – only Sergio Aguero is poorer in this regard – while with his right he has only netted 9.7% of his efforts – the poorest of the top five marksmen and even worse than left-footed Salah.
Morata can find some solace in his aerial form. With six headed goals, he leads this group in that regard, while his conversion rate of 31.6% lags behind only Aguero, who has scored 33.3% of his headed attempts.
So while the ex-Juventus man cannot be considered a roaring success, he cannot be seen as a complete flop either – Chelsea just need to keep aiming for his head.