Álvaro Morata has several fronts to worry about. Beyond the competition that he has in the rojiblanca front with Diego Costa, Correa or João Félix, the Madrid tip is the leader of an unpleasant statistic for a scorer: the offside. And he is the LaLiga player who has been asked for this infringement more times. Just yesterday, in the victory against Betis in the Wanda Metropolitano (1-0), they canceled a goal (which would have been the first goal of the match) for this reason.
After Morata, who 36 games have been pointed out in 32 gamesJaime Mata, from Getafe, and Maxi Gómez, from Valencia, complete the podium with 33 and 32, respectively. The three of them are the only ones who average more than one offside per game. The fact that Morata has fallen into the non-regulatory position so many times indicates that, as a good striker, likes to play at the edge of the defensive line to be able to beat them in speed or anticipate the auction. However, the data shows that is not managing to prevail in this battle. That leads him to, on occasions like against Betis, lose the opportunity to increase his scoring account by canceling the goals for this circumstance.
Despite this, Morata has so far 12 goals in the league championship and 16 among all competitions in a total of 41 games played. The front has returned to a high level after the break by COVID-19, since has scored four goals in the nine days held so far in LaLiga's return. This makes him the Atlético post-pandemic top scorer surpassing the three goals that his main rival has scored for a place in the starting eleven of Simeone: Diego Costa. Both have played a key role in this part of the season for Atlético to certify with their victory against Betis their qualification for the eighth consecutive year to compete in the Champions League.