Chelsea
have once again broken their record transfer fee to bring in a new striker,
but Alvaro Morata will need to buck the trend to prove his worth.
The Blues have agreed an initial £58m fee - potentially rising to £70m -
with Real Madrid for the services of Morata, according to Sky sources, which
will see him become the club's most expensive player.
In fact, the top three highest fees Chelsea have paid for players in their
history have all been attempts to fill the void at the top end of the pitch.
However, their history of buying strikers suggests throwing money at the
problem will not necessarily solve it.
Diego Costa may not have been a snip at £32.3m, but last season's top
goalscorer - who has been told he is not in Antonio Conte's plans for the
new campaign - has proved better value for money than those who required
more sizeable sums...
Fernando Torres
It would be fair to say Liverpool got a better deal on selling Torres.
Arriving at Stamford Bridge for just short of £50m after a summer in which
he scored the 2010 World Cup final winner, the Kop had lost a cult hero to
their Premier League rivals.
Despite scoring more than once every two games on Merseyside, El Nino's
storming start to the Premier League blew over by the time they reached west
London.
Torres managed just 20 Premier League goals at Chelsea, failing to reach
double figures in any of his three and a half seasons at the club.
Morata told Sky Sports News he asked compatriot Torres for advice before
deciding on a move to Chelsea. He may not be the best person to ask.
Andriy Shevchenko
Long AC Milan's hero No 7, Shevchenko's arrival at Chelsea - for close to
£39m - looked to be money well spent.
Shevchenko had scored 127 goals in 193 Serie A games for Milan, and with a
Champions League medal already in his locker, the forward brought the
promise of European glory owner Roman Abramovich always craved.
Months after becoming Milan's all-time record goalscorer, Shevchenko's
switch to Chelsea in 2006 was followed by just four goals in 30 Premier
League appearances for the Blues in his first season at the club.
Chelsea's strikers - value for money?
Player Cost per goal
Fernando Torres £1m per goal
Andriy Shevchenko £0.5m per goal
Diego Costa
£360k per goal
Chelsea stuck with their misfiring forward the following campaign, while
sacked Jose Mourinho paid the price, but the Ukrainian's efforts still went
wayward and Shevchenko left in 2008.
Michy Batshuayi?
While the 23-year-old has only just finished his first season at Chelsea,
the club's signing of Morata hints Conte is not willing to rely on the
Belgium international when Costa does leave the club.
Signing for more than £33m last summer, Batshuayi got off to a flyer with
three goals in his first three games for the club last August, but then
failed to find the net again in 2016.
The striker did seal Chelsea's Premier League title with the winner against
West Brom in May, sparking a late flurry at the end of the campaign, but
Batshuayi's five top-flight goals overall have each cost a hefty figure.
Meanwhile, Costa's goals earned more points than any other Premier League
player last season, despite Harry Kane hitting nine more overall, making the
Blues forward something of a bargain.
Morata will cost the club a lot more, but money does not always guarantee
success...
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