Morata rejected Tottenham because he was afraid of Harry Kane - Pochettino

Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata rejected a move to Tottenham because he didn’t want to compete for a place with Harry Kane, according to Mauricio Pochettino.

Morata is Chelsea’s club-record signing after joining from Real Madrid in a £70 million deal last month.

But Pochettino wanted the Spain international at Spurs and claims the striker turned down the opportunity as he was wary of Kane being the first-choice forward at the club.

‘Morata talked about me in the media and said: ‘Mauricio called me.’ That was from the beginning, two years ago or more,’ said the Spurs boss.

‘He said to me: ‘Why do you want me if you have Harry Kane?’

‘You know, if you go to try to sign a striker, they will say: ‘Eh gaffer, you want me for what?

‘‘To be on the bench? Because it’s Harry Kane, I cannot compete with Harry Kane or Hugo Lloris or different players.’’