Alvaro Morata‘s transfer to CD Leganes is a shocking development in modern Spanish football, indicating a sharp competitive drop for a world-class striker.
Throughout his career, Morata has been a highly sought-after nomadic journeyman, bouncing between European elite giants such as Real Madrid, Juventus, Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, and AC Milan, while earning massive career transfer fees.
This relentless, predictable cycle of changing clubs whenever he encounters poor form, public criticism, or intense media scrutiny has frequently led football fans to mock his “transfer addiction.”
His most recent nomadic loop took him to Como 1907 for the 2025-26 season, where he was managed by Cesc Fabregas. However, this high-profile Italian stint quickly devolved into an absolute disaster, with Morata giving a ghost-like performance on the pitch.
He finished the grueling Serie A season with no league goals and a single assist, scoring only once against Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia. Compounding his severe goal-scoring struggles, a lack of discipline resulted in a quick red card against Fiorentina, prompting harsh public criticism from Fabregas himself.
Despite the severe competitive slump, a strict conditional obligation-to-buy clause forced Como to complete a permanent €12 million transfer from AC Milan, locking them into an expensive, long-term contract with a severely underperforming striker.
Morata, desperate for a complete career reset, orchestrated a dramatic move to Spanish second-division club CD Leganes, causing a massive sporting, financial, and cultural shockwave in Madrid.
🚨🔵⚪️ CD Leganés reach verbal agreement to sign Álvaro Morata, here we go!
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 28, 2026
Spanish second division side set to land the striker on loan from Como, he’s already travelled for medical to take place this weekend.
New chapter for Morata. 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/2YVIoJmhAa
To facilitate the transfer under Leganes’ strict second-division budget constraints, Morata accepted significant personal wage cuts, while a frustrated Como management agreed to subsidize a large portion of his remaining salary.
This surprising tier-two move represents a significant sporting setback, but it was driven entirely by personal and family reasons, as Morata explicitly prioritized escaping his Italian media struggles in order to return home to Madrid to be with his wife and four children.
However, this local homecoming has sparked intense debate and immediate accusations of being a “traitor” due to a direct, blatant contradiction of his most recent public statements.
Morata publicly declared in 2025 that he would do everything in his power to play for Getafe, where he spent his formative year in the youth academy between 2007 and 2008 and has a deep, lifelong emotional connection.
I will do everything possible to play for Getafe again, you have to be grateful, they have helped me a lot.
Morata crossed the ultimate local boundary by signing for CD Leganes instead, landing directly in the heart of the fierce “Derbi Histórico.” Getafe and Leganés are neighboring South Madrid municipalities separated by only four kilometers, and they share a bitter local rivalry that dates back to the 1920s.
This rivalry is unique in Spanish football history because it has been actively contested at every level of the game, from regional fifth-division dirt pitches to La Liga.
Morata’s public pledge of allegiance to Getafe, only to sign for their fiercest local rivals, has offended local fans.
Alvaro Morata’s fall-off from top division football to lower division football is something that any of the football ever thought to be happen.
