Alvaro Morata reveals threats towards his wife and children
By Ross Jackson
Spain forward Alvaro Morata has revealed the awful messages he's been sent following his underwhelming performances at Euro 2020 so far, with some even threatening his family.
The Spaniard has struggled to find the back of the net at this summer's tournament, bagging just a single goal in his three outings and spurning a host of clear-cut chances.
Morata failed to convert a penalty in Spain's 5-0 win against Slovakia on Tuesday, though his performance against Poland - ironically the only game he has scored in - saw him come in for a lot of criticism.
The forward admitted his displays at Euro 2020 haven't been at the level he would expect from himself, but after revealing the extent of the horrendous messages he's received after games he says people should put themselves in his shoes before sending such vile abuse.
“I’m not doing my job well," he told the Spanish radio station Cope (via Football Italia). “I went nine hours without sleep after Poland. I have received threats, insults to the family, saying ‘we hope your children will die'. But I’m fine, maybe a few years ago I would have been much worse. Maybe I didn’t do my job as I should.
“I understand that you criticise me for not scoring, but people should put themselves in my place, understand what it means to receive threats, to tell you that your children must die. When some tragedy happens, they’ll say he was a good guy.”
?? @AlvaroMorata, en @partidazocope
— El Partidazo de COPE (@partidazocope) June 24, 2021
? "Estuve 9 horas sin dormir tras el partido ante Polonia"
? "He recibido amenazas, insultos a mi familia, que ojalá se mueran mis hijos..."
? "Me molesta que lo tenga que vivir mi mujer y que a mi hijos les digan de todo"#PartidazoCOPE pic.twitter.com/d4gNTI3mcp
Despite being able to ignore the messages he's been sent, Morata added that the abuse isn't confined to social media and that his family have been abused while watching Spain's games.
"When I arrive at the hotel, I put my phone away, but the thing that bothers me is that they say these things to my wife and children at the stadium,” he added.
Morata went on to reveal he regularly talks to the national team's therapist and that being able to open up about the abuse he receives has been a huge help to him.
“It helps us a lot, it’s great to have someone who listens to you whenever you need them,” he said. “My teammates make fun of me for this, but luckily I can talk about it with him.”