Spain's Morata takes U19 scoring plaudits
Monday, August 1, 2011
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Spain striker Álvaro Morata finished as the top scorer at the UEFA European Under-19 Championship, setting a new mark for the finals tournament with his six goals in Romania.
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There was a double celebration for Álvaro Morata at the end of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship as, in addition to Spain's final victory, he finished as the tournament's top scorer.
The Real Madrid CF striker scored six goals in his four finals appearances in Romania, including a hat-trick against Serbia on Matchday 2 and a double in the semi-final defeat of the Republic of Ireland. He managed three goals more than Tomáš Přikryl and team-mate Paco Alcácer, who scored twice in extra time in Spain's showpiece triumph against the Czech Republic. Six players – including fellow Spaniards Juanmi and Pablo Sarabia – ended on two. Twenty players scored once each with two own goals.
Morata was also the top scorer overall on ten goals, with three Spain players in the top seven over the course of the season, Isco and Sarabia both managing six goals. None of the other players, including Muhammet Demir of Turkey and Serbia's Nenad Lukić, who scored six times or more found the net in the final tournament.
Morata also set a new mark for the U19 finals, his six goals surpassing the totals of Spain's Alberto Bueno and İlhan Parlak of Turkey (both 2006) and Serbia and Montenegro's Borko Veselinović (2005), who all scored five goals. Veselinović, however, still holds the U19 record for the most goals scored in a season having managed 11 in 2004/05.
UEFA European Under-19 Championship top scorers
Finals
6 Álvaro Morata (Spain)
3 Tomáš Přikryl (Czech Republic)
3 Paco Alcácer (Spain)
2 Anthony O'Connor (Republic of Ireland)
2 Tomáš Jeleček (Czech Republic)
2 Djordje Despotović (Serbia)
2 Juanmi (Spain)
2 Pablo Sarabia (Spain)
2 Patrik Lácha (Czech Republic)
Overall
10 Álvaro Morata (Spain)
8 Muhammet Demir (Turkey)
7 Moritz Leitner (Germany)
6 Nenad Lukić (Serbia)
6 Isco (Spain)
6 Pablo Sarabia (Spain)
6 Mushaga Bakenga (Norway)
Previous finals top scorers
2010 4 Daniel Pacheco (Spain)
2009 4 Nathan Delfouneso (England)
2008 4 Tomáš Necid (Czech Republic)
2007 3 Anis Ben-Hatira (Germany), Kostas Mitroglou (Greece)
2006 5 Alberto Bueno (Spain), İlhan Parlak (Turkey)
2005 5 Borko Veselinović (Serbia & Montenegro)
2004 4 Ali Öztürk (Turkey), Łukasz Piszczek (Poland)
2003 3 Sébastien Grax (France), Paulo Sérgio (Portugal)
2002 3 Dean Ashton (England), Jonathan Daly (Republic of Ireland), Filip Šebo (Slovakia), Fernando Torres (Spain)
Previous season top scorers
2009/10 8 Mattia Destro (Italy)
2008/09 7 Nathan Delfouneso (England), Yacine Brahimi (France)
2007/08 7 Michalis Pavlis (Greece)
2006/07 8 Kostas Mitroglou (Greece), Krisztián Németh (Hungary), Adam Rooney (Republic of Ireland)
2005/06 10 İlhan Parlak (Turkey)
2004/05 11 Borko Veselinović (Serbia & Montenegro)
2003/04 8 Oleksandr Aliyev (Ukraine), Ali Öztürk (Turkey), Łukasz Piszczek (Poland)
2002/03 9 Sébastien Grax (France)
2001/02 10 Kevin Vandenbergh (Belgium)
