Alvaro Morata 'happy to stay at Juventus' despite Barcelona links

Alvaro Morata has expressed his desire to stay with Serie A giants Juventus, despite reported interest from Barcelona.

The 29-year-old is currently on loan with the Turin-based outfit from Atletico Madrid, and there is an option to make his deal permanent for around €35m (£29m) at the end of the season.

Morata was heavily linked with a move to Barca in January, and the Spain international has confirmed that they made contact with him over a potential switch to Camp Nou; however, he insists that he is happy with Juve and intends to stay put.

Speaking about his future to the press before their 1-1 draw with Villarreal in the Champions League, Morata said: "It's not important now. I had a conversation with [Massimiliano] Allegri about it [Barcelona's bid] – he told me that [Dusan Vlahovic's] arrival would help me and so it has.

"I'm happy to be at Juventus – if it was up to me, I'd always stay here."

Morata has scored 28 goals in 77 appearances for Juve across all competitions in his second spell with the club, having previously found the net 27 times in 94 appearances between 2014 and 2016.