Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata will undergo a medical in Spain on Thursday as he closes in on completing his move to Atletico Madrid.
The Spain international will depart Stamford Bridge on an initial six-month loan deal, with the Liga outfit having the option to buy Morata for £43.7m ($57m) at the end of the season. There is understood to be a further £4.4m ($5.7m) in loan fees.
His departure from west London has been signed off following the confirmation of Gonzalo Higuain’s arrival on a loan deal from Juventus, with the Argentina international reuniting with his former boss at Napoli, Maurizio Sarri.
And Sarri confirmed his happiness at having finally landed Higuain’s signature after Morata made it clear that he wanted to leave the club during the January transfer window.
“I think that Morata is a very good player,” he told reporters ahead of Thursday’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Tottenham. “I think that Morata has the characteristics for playing in my team.
“But Morata, one month ago, said he wanted to play in another team.
“So it was really very difficult for him to give us the 100 per cent for his mental situation. But I think that Morata is potentially a very important player. From the physical and technical point of view, he is a very good player and suitable for my football.”
