Spain captain Alvaro Morata has said Euro 2024 is “likely” his last international tournament and hit out at the “lack of respect” towards him in the country.
The Atletico Madrid striker raised doubts over his future at both club and international level, despite captaining his side to the European Championship semi-finals.
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Earlier this month, The Athletic reported that representatives of Saudi Pro League side Al Qadsiah were in Spain for discussions with representatives of Morata. Carlos Anton, Al-Qadsiah’s sporting director, was leading the negotiations in Madrid.
In an interview with Spanish media outlet El Mundo, Morata said he did not want to talk about his international career after the tournament but admitted it was “likely” that he would not make himself available for the national team.
The 31-year-old has scored 36 goals in 78 caps for Spain — he is fourth in the nation’s all-time leading goal scorer list — and scored 21 goals in the 2023-24 season for Atletico, although just two of those came in the final four months of the season.
Despite his international goal tally, Morata has had a turbulent relationship with Spain supporters, who have whistled him during matches — including during the European Championship in 2021 and earlier this year, in a friendly against Brazil.
In 2021, Morata said he and his family had received death threats during the international tournament.
Morata, who has had spells at Chelsea and Juventus, added that he was “happier” when he is outside of Spain.
“It is because people respect me,” he said. “In Spain, there is no respect for anything or anyone.”
Morata added that he was criticised for crying on the touchline against Germany, saying that he received comments that “Spain would be better off without me anyway” and hoping that he was crying because he would be suspended for the final, after UEFA erroneously reported he had been shown a yellow card.
The striker was also asked about his club future at Atletico Madrid and gave an ambiguous answer when pressed on whether he had committed his future to the club beyond this summer. His Atletico contract runs until 2026.
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“Well yes, I am dying to win titles with Atletico,” he added. “But you have to weigh up what is worth it and what is not.”
The Spain international added that he wanted to remain part of football after his playing career in a representative role for young players.
Spain face France in the Euro 2024 semi-finals on Tuesday.
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Spain's direct central midfielders unlocked Germany - they are the team to beat
(Sebastian Widmann – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
