Rodriguez and Morata have both been offloaded by Real this summer (Picture: Getty)
Rodriguez and Morata have both been offloaded by Real this summer (Picture: Getty)

Bayern Munich new boy James Rodriguez has hailed former teammate Alvaro Morata and believes he will make a big impression at Chelsea as the Spaniard prepares to make his debut on Tuesday.

The two players both left Real Madrid this summer, James initially on loan and Morata in a £70m deal to Stamford Bridge, and they will face off in Singapore when the two clubs take part in their next pre-season friendly.

Antonio Conte has confirmed that Morata will play some part in the match, though will start on the bench having only flown in and met up with the squad over the weekend.

Morata only arrived in Singapore on Saturday, completing his first training session a day later (Getty)

While Chelsea fans will get just a taster of the Spanish striker in action, James already knows all about him thanks to their time together at Real and believes the Blues are in for a real treat.

‘Morata is an amazing player with an amazing strike,’ James told reporters.

‘He will do very well at Chelsea. At Real Madrid, he was very good.’

Chelsea's pre-season fixtures

Chelsea 3-0 Arsenal
Chelsea 2-3 Bayern Munich
Chelsea 1-2 Inter Milan
Aug 6 – Arsenal (Wembley – Community Shield)

Carlo Ancelotti, who coached Morata at Real and was in charge when he was sold to Juventus, agreed with James and hinted that he might not only line up through the middle.

‘He is a fantastic striker and young too. Chelsea have a made a good signing,’ said the former Blues boss.

‘He can help the team to be better. He is a complete striker. At Real Madrid, he played as a central striker, on the side sometimes and in all attacking positions.

‘He is a really good signing. He can work a lot for the team also.’

Conte, likewise, expects his club record signing to have a big impact in the Premier League next season and outlined his plan to bring him off the bench against Bayern.

‘My plan is to give him the possibility to play part of the game, but not from the start because he only arrived [on Sunday] and started to work with us,’ Conte told a news conference.

James and Ancelotti were speaking at Bayern’s pre-match press conference (Picture: Getty)
James and Ancelotti were speaking at Bayern’s pre-match press conference (Picture: Getty)

‘Morata is a young player who has a lot of experience in his career because he played with two big teams in Real Madrid and Juventus. He has also played a lot of games in the Champions League and won it last season.

‘He can have a big impact in the Premier League. It’s different if you compare it to leagues in other countries because it’s very tough and physically it’s strong, but Morata is ready to have a big impact.’

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