Cristiano Ronaldo has admitted that the loss of Alvaro Morata to Chelsea has weakened the Real Madrid team.
Morata opted to leave Madrid in the summer transfer window as Antonio Conte moved quickly to bolster his attacking options at Stamford Bridge.
The 25-year-old signed for the Blues back in July and is seen as the main replacement for Diego Costa at the west London club.
Morata has been making a steady start to life in London, with the striker having netted six goals in the Premier League so far this season.
And Ronaldo admits that the loss of Morata in the summer has hampered Real Madrid, who were beaten 3-1 by Tottenham in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Ronaldo is quoted as saying by Metro: “The players who have come in have great potential.
“But Pepe, Morata and James Rodriguez made us stronger – now the team is younger.
“We are also without [Dani] Carvajal and [Gareth] Bale. ‘It’s not a worse squad, but it has less experience and that is very important – though it is not an excuse. I’m happy and don’t want to set off alarms.”
Morata will be hoping to feature for Chelsea when the Blues return to Premier League action on Sunday afternoon with a crunch clash against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues head into that game looking to get back to winning ways after the disappointment of their 3-0 loss to Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Chelsea are currently fourth in the table and nine points behind leaders Manchester City after 10 games of the new campaign.
