During Spain’s epic 5-3 victory over Croatia in Copenhagen on Monday, the camera panned to two fans holding up a homemade sign that read: ‘Morata yo tampoco la metod’.
‘Morata, I do not either’.
(Yes, the double meaning is basically the same and completely intended).
Gag captured on camera, ironically just after Alvaro Morata’s knocking strike to put Spain 4-3 in extra time, felt like a definite shift in the story of Spain’s starting number nine.
It was a Je Suis Morata moment. Spain laughed with him, not at him.
At a time before the first ball was kicked – or delivered by a small car – at Euro 2020, Morata had already become the standard joke, and the obvious excuse for Spain’s shortcomings in the dry years after 2012.
“Morata yo tampoco la method” The coma of the vocative, for its sake, genius. pic.twitter.com/8OOJymgdGa
– Sergio San Bruno (@ sacary7) June 28, 2021
He was the striker who could not finish. The flop. Al-VAR-o Morata.
It was amazing bants, until it was not.
In a friendly match before Portugal, Spanish fans shouted “Morata, how bad you are”.
The Juventus star was then whistled and laughed when Spain fought to a 0-0 draw against Sweden at a sparse La Cartuja (a stadium not known for its atmosphere) in its group E opener.
For a striker with one in two international records, it seemed a bit much.
After the group game, where he did once but also missed a penalty, Morata revealed the levels of abuse and threats he and his family had received (apparently from Spain fans) as a result of a couple of supposedly subpar displays.
Morata found her shooting boots at just the right time! ? pic.twitter.com/iiCEOqXHEk
– 90min (@ 90min_Football) 28 June 2021
“I went nine hours without sleep after Poland,” he said. “I have received threats, insults against the family and said ‘we hope your children will die’.
“I understand that you are criticizing me for not scoring, but people should take my place, understand what it means to be threatened, to say that your children must die.
“When I arrive at the hotel, I put away my phone, but what bothers me is that they say these things to my wife and children at the stadium.”
It speaks to his mental strength – something that has also been questioned before – that Morata was able to put all this aside and continue playing at all.
Despite the general mood, Luis Enrique never wavered in his support for his frontman, Morata started in all three group games and seemed mildly confused about having to answer questions about his choice.
“Morata gives us much – much more than you think,” was his rebuttal.
Luis Enrique has supported Morata throughout Euro 2020 / Quality Sport Images / Getty Images
As has been clear throughout the tournament and at club level, there are few (if any) Spanish options that are better suited to Luis Enrique’s system than Morata. He has fantastic feet, he wins flawlessly (eight against Croatia) and he is a striker who can connect games by coming up short to create angles and spaces.
And he scores goals (21 in 44 for Spain), although not as many as he could.
But anyway, when has a truly productive central goal scorer been the only way to form a successful attack at the international level?
Olivier Giroud did not score in 2018, but was important because Didier Deschamp’s side bumped into the World Cup in Moscow. 20 years before his countrymen, Stephane Guivarc’h set the standard for strikers who do not score.
Flemming Povlsen played every minute at the top during Denmark’s remarkable Euro 1992 victory without a single goal.
Even the great Fernando Torres did only once at Euro 2008, despite starting five of six matches. Granted, his one goal came as the winner in the final.
Fernando Torres was not productive at the European Championships in 2008 or the World Cup in 2010 when Spain lifted trophies / Clive Rose / Getty Images
After two tough group matches, Spain is now the top scorer in the tournament, with ten in its last two excursions – two more than during the entire World Cup campaign in 2010. And in a game that had almost literally everything, Morata’s decisive fourth against Croatia could very well be La Roja fans’ lasting memory of Euro 2020.
Not only was it an important strike in connection with the game, but it was exactly the kind of chance that Morata would be expected to miss.
Morata calmly took down Dani Olmo’s crossbar and let the ball bounce high before hitting goal past Dominik Livakovic and into the net’s roof.
Bam! What is it like not to score ?!
It was great drama and even better justification.
Morata’s forerunners have revived Spanish hopes at Euro 2020 / Stuart Franklin / Getty Images
Morata scores – he now has more Euro goals than David Villa – and he does a lot for this Spanish team.
It seems that the Spanish fans are starting to realize it, or at least learn to love him even when he is not exactly as they want him to be.
Whether the newfound love will last a long time if Spain fails to keep the goals remains to be seen. Morata knows the fragility of the arrangement.
He told AS, via the Guardian: “The ball that goes in or not can take you from the front page to eat all sh * ti Spain.”
With Switzerland in the quarters on July 2, there is a decent chance that Morata will be on the front page again and score goals even if you do not …
