Álvaro Morata has completed a permanent transfer from Milan to Como, with the Serie A club triggering the buy option in his loan agreement on 16 June 2026. The fee is reported at around €12m, and Como also had to pay Galatasaray roughly €5m earlier in the year to end an existing loan arrangement that had briefly taken Morata to Turkey before he returned to Como. The striker has signed a new contract running to the summer of 2029.
Como manager Cesc Fàbregas pushed hard to keep Morata at the club on a permanent basis. Fàbregas, a former Chelsea and Spain teammate of the striker, brought him in on loan from Milan in August 2025 and has built his forward line around him since. With Como finishing fourth in Serie A last season and qualifying for European football for the first time in decades, Fàbregas wanted a proven, experienced number nine to lead the line as the club steps up in competition.
For Milan, the deal closes the book on a signing that never really worked out. Morata joined the club from Atlético Madrid for around €13m in the summer of 2024 but struggled to nail down a starting role, and he was loaned to Galatasaray in January before that move was cut short and he returned to Como. Selling him on permanently allows Milan to recoup a fee on a player who had become a squad option rather than a first-choice striker, and to focus their attacking budget elsewhere.
Morata's first season at Como was a difficult one on the pitch. He made around 30 appearances but managed just a single goal and two assists, a modest return for a striker with his pedigree. He was also sent off against Fiorentina in February after picking up two yellow cards in the space of two minutes, prompting a pointed public rebuke from Fàbregas, who told reporters the striker needed to "change careers" if he couldn't handle provocation on the pitch. The relationship cooled publicly in that moment but clearly recovered enough for the club to commit to him long-term.
Despite the lack of goals, Fàbregas has consistently pointed to what Morata brings beyond the scoresheet: leadership, know-how at the top level, and a physical presence that helps Como's build-up play even when he isn't finishing chances himself. The Spain captain also took a reported pay cut to facilitate the move, a gesture Fàbregas has cited as proof of his commitment to the project.
With Como now playing in Europe, Fàbregas will be hoping Morata's experience of big occasions — from Chelsea to Atlético Madrid to two European Championship finals with Spain — counts for more than last season's numbers suggest. The challenge for Como is turning his hold-up play and movement into actual goals, something that eluded him for long spells last season.