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48 CHELSEA have clinched the signing of Alvaro Morata from Real Madrid. The 24-year-old Spain striker has agreed a five-year contract at Stamford Bridge in a move believed to be worth around £60million. Morata told the Chelsea web- site: "I am so happy to be here. It's an incredible emotion to be part of this big club. "I am looking to work hard, score as many goals as I can and to win as many trophies as pos- sible." Morata was poised to join Manchester United until their recruitment of former Blues striker Romelu Lukaku, and has instead ended up with the Pre- mier League champions, who are 7/2 to defend their title. Blues boss Antonio Conte brief ly worked with Morata at Juventus and believes the for- ward - who scored 20 goals as Real won both LaLiga and the Champions League last season - can bring something different to the Chelsea frontline. Speaking at a press conference in Beijing earlier on Friday, Con- te said: "We have added a fantas- tic striker, even at a young age he has won a lot already and we are looking forward to welcoming him to the squad. "I think for sure this is a good signing for us. He is a young player, but has a lot of experi- ence, he went to Juventus and Real Madrid. He has a lot of experience and I think this is a good sign for us." Morata will now join up with the Blues squad on their pre- season tour of Asia. They play Arsenal in a friendly at the Bird 's Nest Stadium on Saturday be- fore heading to Singapore. Blues technical director Mi- chael Emenalo told the club website: "We are delighted to complete Alvaro's signing and welcome him to the club. We be- lieve he can make a great impact for Chelsea and look forward to seeing him in action. "Alvaro has proven class at the highest level and his quality will be a huge asset to Antonio and the squad." Morata is set to replace Diego Costa in Conte's starting line-up next season. Conte revealed on Friday that the 28-year-old frontman, who has not travelled to Asia, was told in January he was not part of the club's plans. "I don't like to talk about play- ers that don't stay here, but the only thing I can tell you (is) in January, the Costa situation was very clear, for the club, for him and his agent," said the Italian. "For me the situation is closed." Costa is reported to be keen on a return to Atletico Madrid, although the Spanish club are currently banned from complet- ing the signing of players until January 2018. Sport maltatoday, SUNDAY, 23 JULY 2017 FOOTBALL Subscribe to the e-paper Read the MaltaToday and MaltaToday midweek at 5am on the morning of publication on your Desktop, Tablet or Smartphone Subscribe now at www.maltatoday.com.mt/en/maltatodayepaper With any new annual subscription you will get a FREE copy of your choice either Saviour Balzan's 'Saying It As It Is' or 'GourmetToday 100 best recipes' worth over €20 Subscription options 1 edition: €0.80 3 months: €15.00 MaltaToday and MaltaToday Midweek 6 months: €28.00 MaltaToday and MaltaToday Midweek 12 months: €50.00 + FREE BOOK *best value* Alvaro Morata joins Chelsea from Real Madrid Spain to replace arrested football federation boss THE Spanish state is to seek to suspend football federation boss Angel Maria Villar, who is under arrest as part of a corrup- tion investigation, a government spokesman said on Friday. Villar, his son Gorka and two other football federation execu- tives were detained on Tuesday on allegations of collusion, em- bezzlement and falsifying docu- ments. Villar has denied all the allegations. A judge ordered on Thursday that Villar, a FIFA vice president, should be remanded in custody as he presented a f light risk. The Spanish state's sports body, the Consejo Superior de los Deportes, will meet on Tuesday to discuss Villar's replacement at the top of soccer federation RFEF, government spokesman Inigo Mendez de Vigo said. "Our aim from the outset was to ensure that everything is working normally at a time when the president and vice-president (of the RFEF) are in custody," Mendez de Vigo told a news con- ference after the government's weekly cabinet meeting.