Conte confirms Morata's fitness ahead of Barcelona test

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte confirmed his star striker Alvaro Morata will be healthy and ready to play in a crucial Champions League first-leg tilt against Barcelona, adding that he’ll also turn to the Spain international for a Friday tilt with Hull City in order to give him more minutes ahead of the Blaugrana test.

Morata only just returned to action after a month of recovery on the sidelines, featuring for half an hour in Chelsea’s 3-0 win over West Brom on Monday. He had been dealing with a back injury, which Morata admitted he had mistakenly aggravated by playing through it in the weeks beforehand.

But Conte, who had previously speculated that Morata might be out for the remainder of the season, confirmed his £58-million man is fighting fit.

“Alvaro has been training with us regularly, every day,” Conte said, according to Liam Twomey of ESPN FC. “His physical condition is improving. Tomorrow, he will play a part of the game (against Hull). He will be ready for the game against Barcelona in the Champions League.”

Chelsea hosts Hull City on Friday in an FA Cup fifth-round match before turning its attention to Catalan giant Barcelona, which visits Stamford Bridge on Tuesday in the first of two legs in this round of 16 matchup.

Conte will be especially pleased to have “solved” Morata’s injury woes with Chelsea soon headed to Manchester for a pair of Premier League fixtures against Manchester United and Manchester City. Morata has recorded 12 goals and five assists in 31 appearances across all competitions for the Blues.

But Morata will first hope to add to his scoring tally against Barcelona, having notched just one goal against the team during a 3-1 Champions League final loss in 2015.