Fernando Torres should make a return to the La Liga

Torres is the shadow of the player he once was

History has repeated itself at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have broken the English transfer record twice in order to secure the services of world class strikers. The first case was in the form of Andriy Shevchenko who was acquired for a fee of £ 30.8 million from AC Milan and the second case is in the form of Fernando Torres who was brought from Liverpool for a breathtaking £50 million. Not only did the strikers’ form take a turn for the worst but they also became liabilities in the eyes of the Blues owner Roman Abramovich who could only watch as his £80 million investments went down the drain.

Shevchenko arrived at Chelsea just a year after winning the prestigious Ballon D’Or and was touted as the ideal replacement for the great Hernan Crespo but failed miserably in his quest. The Ukrainian managed just 9 Premier League goals during his entire spell in London before he was loaned back to former club AC Milan after which he joined his boyhood club Dynamo Kyiv.

The exact same thing has happened to Torres who was once one of the most lethal forwards in the world. The Spaniard was a brilliant success for Liverpool scoring 33 goals in all competitions in his first season with the club and proved to be one of the biggest bargains since the Merseyside outfit payed just £20 million to Atletico Madrid for his signature.

In spite of his good form at the club Torres grew disillusioned due to the club’s inability to win trophies. The striker submitted a transfer request to the club and a £40 million offer from Chelsea soon followed.

The club tried to keep hold of their prized asset and even showed their ambition when they signed Luis Suarez but Torres would not change his mind which caused Liverpool to give in and sell him to Chelsea for an astronomical £50 million. The Spaniard’s form took a tumble at the London club and he would have to wait an agonizing 903 minutes before he scored his Chelsea goal. Torres has now scored just 43 goals in all competitions for Chelsea which is startling as it took him just 1 season at Liverpool to score 33 goals.

It is an open secret that Torres has not been able to succeed at Chelsea and the sooner he moves out from London the better. Returning back to his homeland would be an excellent option as he has been extremely prolific for his country’s national team, even winning the Golden Boot for his exploits during Euro 2012 and performing brilliantly for Spain during the Confederations Cup. Getting a transfer to one of Spain’s big clubs would be a bit difficult but he can rediscover his form at one of the smaller clubs and see out the twilight years of his career in a place where he is happy and appreciated.

A move to Italy would also suit Torres as strikers have been known to rediscover their from in Serie A. A move to Lazio could be fruitful as they are a good club and will soon be on the lookout to replace the aging Miroslav Klose. Jose Mourinho has stated that he wants more firepower from his strikers and will probably soon look to sell Torres.

Torres’s time at Chelsea may not be remembered fondly but his spell at Liverpool will never be forgotten as it was at Merseyside where ‘El Nino’ enjoyed the best part of his career. It probably is fitting that he finishes his career in a way that befits his talent.