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Liverpool's remaining summer spending is apparently all being funneled to the attacking third--Bernard will cost big bucks, Christian Eriksen is going to take a healthy chunk of change, and now, with the preseason tour of Asia and Australia about to get underway, the club have reportedly had their interest piqued by young Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata. Rumors have the club either ready to submit a bid or already done so, with the price tag not entirely dissimilar to what they spent on Luis Alberto and Iago Aspas at around £6m .
Morata hasn't been able to break into the first team on a consistent basis since joining Real Madrid's youth setup in 2008 because it's Real Madrid, but he's featured a handful of times over the past few seasons, even earning an assist against Barcelona back in March. He's scored twice for the senior squad, both match winners, but has found himself buried under the glut of more experienced attacking talent that constantly filters through the Bernabeu.
He did have a very impressive showing at the U21 Euros earlier this summer as part of Spain's title-winning side, scoring the eventual winning goal in each of Spain's three group-stage matches, and added another in the semifinal victory over Norway en route to capturing the tournament's Top Scorer honor.
My initial reaction to this is more oh that's nice than pleasepleaseplease, partly because I don't think this move makes much sense for Liverpool, and part because I don't know if anything has actually happened. He's surely a promising young player, and one who has the makings of a very, very good professional. But on the heels of signing the aforementioned Alberto and Aspas, as well as the links with Bernard and Eriksen (all of whom play different positions, of course), Liverpool would again be ignoring major areas of need and adding someone for a dozen or so tomorrows rather than right now.
Maybe this has something to do with Luis Suarez, maybe it's independent of that, and maybe completely bunk and lazy rumor mongering by the media. Whatever it is, it can't be something that clouds Liverpool's need for players ready to make an impact now, and ones that address the need for quality depth in other areas. So long as the price isn't over the top, it could prove to be a great move for years to come. I just also want to see money available for the club to make some moves for right now.
But, you know, we can watch a video anyway.