Álvaro Morata knows the Vicente Calderón stadium very well, above all the goal areas, although he has never played a minute there. This is because the forward was once the club's ball-boy when he was a player in the club's youth teams.
Today he won't be going there as a spectator, and nor will he be asking any goalkeeper for his gloves. At a touch he might swop shirts with his friend Koke, with whom he was once a teammate. But nothing more. Morata does not have fond memories of his time spent at the club on the banks of the Manzanares River. He arrived from Atlético's football academy, but was largely ignored due to the presence of Borja Bastón, who was the Atléti youth team’s golden boy of the moment.
The young lad asked if he could leave. Amorrortu, manager of the youth teams in those times, remembered the moment in a MARCA article last summer: "Morata left of his own accord. He wanted more opportunities. He was alternated with Borja in the Under-15s team, but didn't play less than the others. I'm glad to see how he's getting on because he's a lovely lad. He's come on really well."
The decision to play in the club was made by his family, and Atléti was chosen simply because the stadium was near their home. Morata, however, was a Real Madrid fan. A fair few pictures can be found of him dressed in the "Merengue" kit when he was a young boy. He didn't have a good time in Atlético, although he still is on friendly terms with some employees and players there.
His first game on Calderón turf will therefore be a special one. Mourinho might even make him a starter in place of Ronaldo, as he did against Barcelona in the Bernabéu.
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