Fernando Torres

[Spike 12,049]

I've had a titful of people saying that Torres would score goals if we did this or did or that or if he played for this team. When I see him

play I see a guy that is afraid of shooting, afraid that if takes a chance he will miss and I believe there is not much that can change that. He struggles when he plays for Spain and they have Xavi, Alonso, Iniesta, Mata, Navas, Pedro, Silva and Carzola. Two goals against Ireland and one against 10 man Italy just doesn't convince me.

Not only that bit he drops deep and drifts out wide too often and tries to dictate play and hold the ball up. He practically plays like Emile Heskey - a striker that is afraid of being a striker. Instead of taking a chance they will either pass or try and dribble into a better shooting position (which more often than not loses the ball). Torres is far more talented than this, he is still rather quick, has good ball control and first touch,good finishing (when he does finish). So why does he try to play like this?

Why will he come good? Because the squad is stronger? Why does he need other players to make him better? If he was so great in the first place 1. He wouldn't need the best team in the world to score and 2. He wouldn't have had a two year period of sucking.

He lacks the strikers instinct.

[capriccioso 2,545]

Yep, he's finished. First off, he was never that good unless the entire team was absolutely dedicated to doing nothing else than getting goals out of him- probably because they had no other choice but to play like that to remain competitive (hi Atletico) or because they relied on a nucleus of players and had very little in striking depth (hi Kopites).

Though recently I've had a spate of calling people shit before them responding with incredible performances, at the first possible occasion, making me look a fool. Now I've said that he'll probably score 4 goals in the Community Shield.

[Las7 951]

I just hope our midfielders and attacking players score their share of goals - I don't know about RDM, personally I will not stomach another 5-10 match drought from Torres. I hope RDM, doesn't make the same mistake as AVB. If Torres doesn't perform he needs to be dropped, I don't care about his overall play, runs etc all he needs to do is simply tasks for a striker - put a round object into the back of the opposition net. Rest of his tasks are secondary.

If RDM falls into same trap as AVB playing under performing players, who don't do the tasks they are on the field to perform. It would be better off playing some academy kids rather than players who don't do their duties. I think he should feel less pressure now to play certain players as a Double Winner and History maker in Chelsea FC.

[Peace. 4,352]

Yes, it is time to face the reality and move on from the "he doesn't score because he doesn't get any service / because our playing style doesn't suit him" myth. This isn't true and we know it.

If Fernando I-need-world-class-players-to-feed-me-in-order-to-look-half-good Torres doesn't score more goals, nor is a good player, it is entirely his own fault. Indeed, as Spike said it, he has no more the instinct to score goals. Because, let's not kid ourselves, if he did these out-of-this-world goal-attempt failures against Manchester United, Blackburn and Norwich, it isn't because our midfield didn't feed him, no, it is because he lacked the technic and the flair to put the ball in the back of the net.

Furthermore, when you look at him playing, it's plain and clear that he tries his best to avoid to shoot on goal. If he comes deep to ask for the ball, if he goes out-wide, if he is never seen in the box, well, he doesn't do this in order to participate more in the game ; he deserts his striker position on purpose : to avoid to get humiliated for another failed tap-in.

Half-good defenders manage to put him in their pocket ; he gets pushed off the ball by players who are smaller and less strong than him. He has also a dreadful first touch (the ball bounce at five yards..). He struggles to beat his defender. All these facts are due to anybody but him.

The fact is that at Loserpool he was the big fish in the small pond. All the resources of the team were set in order to make him shine. Players around him were playing for him. This is a small team mentality, we cannot afford to play to the strength of one player. Even if we were to play this way, he wouldn't shine the way he did at Loserpool because he is finished. His pace is gone, just as his striker instinct. He doesn't have the technical attributes to compensate the abilities he has lost. Plus, he is a one-dimensional striker, he doesn't know how to play a different football than what he played up-north.

Whether he will be good again or not, it's up to him. The players we bought will do only little change on his performances. Of course, he will probably score two or three more goals, due to the fact we will have more creativity. Even though, as long as he doesn't improve his first touch, his finishing, etc... He won't ever be good again. And I am pretty convinced he will never be good enough to be the striker of one of the best teams in the world, i.e. be world-class (or not far from it).

[capriccioso 2,545]

Peace called it all in February when many still had some hopes for him :

We aren't in a situation where we can afford to give the Ladyboy another year. If Manu could have done it with Berbaflop, that is because aside him, all the players and the team were good. This isn't the case at Chelsea, we have many positions on the field to improve, whose the striker's one, hence we do not have time to waste with a soon 28 years-old strieker who can't score to save his life. Even if he captures back some form next year, he isn't a long term solution, and we are trying to build something for the long term, thus we shouldn't waste time with someone who could be usefull for maximum two years. Plus we are paying him 150 000 fucking pounds per week, we aren't a charity association, we should rather give this wage to Hazard and Willian (I name these two players since we are strongly linked with them).

All in all, we have to get rid of this Ladyboy, he is a poison.

As for Ancelotti, I am not agree with you. The kind of players he likes doesn't suit the politic of our club. At Milan when Ancelotti came here, they've found themselves with a team full of grandpas. The same would inexorably have happened with us.

He's also spot on in the post above mine; he's not been confident for a long time now. Even that Barcelona goal, a confident player would have taken a shot earlier than him- he took an extra touch to get it round Valdes.

[DYC. 7,542]

It's very simple. Either he scores 25+ goals in all competitons, yes a Chelsea striker should be able to that, or we move on and learn a good lesson. As long as he plays a good amount of matches of course.

And none of this anonymous displays in big matches. I'm not saying he should score in every big game of course but he should score in a few.

[The Skipper 20,593]

Christ, the season hasn't even started yet and he's already "finished". As many have said this is Torres' last season to actually impress, if he doesn't then we move him on.

The season hasn't even started so we can't judge whether he's finished or not, not just yet anyway.

[capriccioso 2,545]

We're talking basics here. His 'movement' is hardly out of this world, its basic striker positioning. Any competent goal scorer would know where to be instinctively, and if they didn't, their coaches would drum it into their heads.

Now we've established that praising him for positioning is not valid, we have to examine his finishing, which is absolutely terrible, you cannot rely on him to tuck away a chance. You don't know if he'll hit the top corner or do something like this:

And that is exactly what's not needed in a striker. We need someone confident. Someone who'll tuck away the chances he will get. Any idiot can get himself in the same goal scoring positions Torres was in several times last season.

[zolayes 14,489]

Christ, the season hasn't even started yet and he's already "finished". As many have said this is Torres' last season to actually impress, if he doesn't then we move him on.

The season hasn't even started so we can't judge whether he's finished or not, not just yet anyway.

seems some want him to fail so they can claim to have been proven right

[The Skipper 20,593]

We're talking basics here. His 'movement' is hardly out of this world, its basic striker positioning. Any competent goal scorer would know where to be instinctively, and if they didn't, their coaches would drum it into their heads.

Now we've established that praising him for positioning is not valid, we have to examine his finishing, which is absolutely terrible, you cannot rely on him to tuck away a chance. You don't know if he'll hit the top corner or do something like this:

And that is exactly what's not needed in a striker. We need someone confident. Someone who'll tuck away the chances he will get. Any idiot can get himself in the same goal scoring positions Torres was in several times last season.

Torres has good movement, your judgement's just being clouded. For Spain in the Euros, Torres made so many good runs, if Spain were more penetrative they would've got a lot of good goals.

And again, people seem to discredit what Torres has done in the last few months. He hardly looks like that player lacking in confidence. In the last couple of months Torres has scored quite a lot (10 goals for CFC and Spain since RDM took over if I'm not incorrect) and if anything is to go by, Torres will have a decent season.

Torres still has a quality finish IMO. As Zolayes said, just wait for the season to start and if he does shit then fair enough. Atleast give him a chance to rectify himself. This is the guy's last chance, let him actually do something with it before shooting him down already.

[capriccioso 2,545]

Torres has good movement, your judgement's just being clouded. For Spain in the Euros, Torres made so many good runs, if Spain were more penetrative they would've got a lot of good goals.

And again, people seem to discredit what Torres has done in the last few months. He hardly looks like that player lacking in confidence. In the last couple of months Torres has scored quite a lot (10 goals for CFC and Spain since RDM took over if I'm not incorrect) and if anything is to go by, Torres will have a decent season.

Torres still has a quality finish IMO. As Zolayes said, just wait for the season to start and if he does shit then fair enough. Atleast give him a chance to rectify himself. This is the guy's last chance, let him actually do something with it before shooting him down already.

His finish is unreliable, though, and that's what we can't afford. His runs are nothing out of the ordinary, every striker at a biggish club should be expected to do that. He's not Inzaghi.

[HRiver 1,512]

Torres is not finished. Can you say that he didn't improve in the last 3 months of last season? Once he ended his 24 games goal drought in March he transformed into a completely different player. He started to score goals that he couldn't score to save his life in his first three months at the club. Remember that it took him 14 games to score ONE goal in his first season.

2 goals v Leicester, 1 at Villa Park in the league, that famous goal at Camp Nou, then the hat-trick vs QPR just a few days after. And that's when he started to show signs of the old Torres - the Torres of the Liverpool days, the Torres that the club spent £50 million for. And that's 7 goals in two and half months, which in my opinion is a great improvement. Plus he scored 4 goals for his international team within just a month. And remember that RDM started with Drogba in our most important games of the season. Drogba started vs Napoli at home, in both of the clashes against Barca, against Spurs in the FA Cup semi and in both of the finals.

This season it will be him who will step up for the big occasions, now that Drogba's gone and he's the main man. And you will see that he'll score plenty.

[The Skipper 20,593]

His finish is unreliable, though, and that's what we can't afford. His runs are nothing out of the ordinary, every striker at a biggish club should be expected to do that. He's not Inzaghi.

Then again, not many players are like Inzaghi. Torres' movement isn't exactly the best ever but he's still good.

Again, I just want the season to start. If Torres fucks up, sell him. If he takes his last chance then he can do a good job for us upfront.

[Bir_CFC 3,455]

People are saying that he drops deep and drifts out because he's scared? I think that's more to do because he's scared about the media claiming he doesn't do shit so he's changed his play style, that if I'm not getting the service or finishing my chances, I'll have to at least redeem myself in some manner. He never used to do that Liverpool, even during his last season there when he lost form. That's more him trying to get more involved instead of getting scared. Chelsea's slow tempo build-up won't suit any striker who likes to play off the last defender.

The Brighton match, he stayed forward for a long time, omg omg his confidence is back because he's in the box now and didn't drift wide. He stayed near the box the whole match, got jack shit and then dropped deep in his last 10-15mins because he was so starved and didn't want to get subbed off after getting like 5 touches.

Anyways, I would love it if we can upgrade Torres, but that'll be very hard. I would love Cavani or Falcao but that would be very hard. Considering FFP selling Torres for a loss would surely screw us up, we're actually BETTER off keeping Torres than selling him this year. We can amortize the transfer fee but the loss we have to record in full, not sure we can afford to take that huge of a hit unless we win the PL and CL this year to compensate or somehow manage to sell Malouda and Benayoun for 20M lol.

He's a chelsea player, our first choice striker I will support him to the fullest.

[Kieran. 6,317]

@Bir_CFC,

The Torres-FFP argument doesn't make sense. He was signed before FFP, so how would that leave us worse off?

[manpe 10,855]

Even that Barcelona goal, a confident player would have taken a shot earlier than him- he took an extra touch to get it round Valdes.

I suppose Lampard wasn't confident either in his Ballon d'Or runner-up season.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy1NAzeiWiI

Sometimes you're full of crap, cap, sorry. Rounding the goalkeeper in a 1 on 1 is the safest thing you can do. Chipping or anything else is much riskier. Lamps himself said it was the first time he ever rounded a goalie, because it was instincts of slotting it home safely.

[dan200 1]

I think 2012/13 will really be Torres' year. With Drogba not here I think he will really come out of his shell and show us what he's made of.

Take a look at this blog I found about him, it also has a pretty cool competition at the bottom where you can win a signed Chelsea football!

http://blog.oddslife.com/2012/08/201213-to-mark-torres-resurgence/

[Django 83]

Torres works hard for the shirt and deserves the respect we should give every Chelsea player. As long as he continues to work hard, I'll support him until the day he is no longer a Chelsea player.