Fernando Torres - Will he Sink or Swim?

Unanswered questions constantly surround our £50m star man. That pretty much sums up the Spaniard’s roller-coaster Chelsea career to date! It just wouldn’t be Fernando Torres without the accompanying controversy, would it? His outburst of emotion following his withdrawal during the QPR game has once again put our striker at the centre of attention for less than desirable reasons. Sadly, instances when Torres is a major talking point because of his goal scoring exploits on the pitch have become very limited these days!

The big question on every Chelsea fans’ mind is, will Fernando Torres ever return to his best form?

With such a short amount of cover upfront, our number nine needs to be on the top of his game if we are to have any chance of securing a top 4 finish and improving on last season’s league campaign. There is some stiff competition this time around, many good squads have been assembled and they will be challenging us all the way; the heat is truly on.

So will the Spanish international be able to carry us over the finish line with a 20-plus goal tally?

The signs are arguably looking promising; Fernando has scored two goals in the opening four league games of the season and his goal against Newcastle was outstanding. Two in four is a comforting statistic on the surface, especially considering the tough times he has endured at Chelsea, but does this statistic hold any true substance? Are his performances on the whole looking like they are going to reward us with the goals that were originally promised along with his hefty £50m price tag? Do these first two goals spell the road to recovery for the Spaniard, or simply a temporary reprieve from a colossal goal drought?

After the QPR match, when asked about Torres’ poor form in the past two games, Roberto Di Matteo replied: “We can’t put too much pressure on one player. We are a team and everybody has responsibility. We’re looking for other players to score goals as well.”

To me it looks like Di Matteo is simply attempting to lift some of the weight and expectation off the striker’s shoulders. However, could there be a subtle hint hidden within this comment? Perhaps a message of a lack of confidence in his ability to bag us goals?

Some of the Blues’ faithful are becoming increasingly frustrated with our main man, a minority claiming that that he requires being spoon fed with one-on-one opportunities to score goals. Interestingly, of the 81 goals he scored for Liverpool, 56 of them were as a direct result from a defence-splitting through ball. Is this the sign of a one dimensional striker? Or the sign of a clinical finisher who makes intelligent runs in behind backlines?

I wouldn’t go as far as saying that Torres requires being spoon-fed, but he does look reluctant to pull the trigger when he has received chances. You will see Fernando create a half yard of space for a shot, then second guess himself and decide to cut back inside, which usually leads to the chance being wasted. In these moments it looks like his goal scoring instincts have all but abandoned him. One minute the Spaniard is radiating confidence, the next the spring in his step is completely gone. The enigma that is Fernando Torres!

We all want him to succeed in Chelsea’ blue, but there must come a point when he has to either sink or swim. Questions do need to be raised by the powers-that-be at Chelsea Football Club. Does our number nine offer enough on the pitch to be seen as an automatic starter and the long term replacement to Didier Drogba?

I believe that the “Torres will come good” mantra has become increasingly tired. Admittedly, we have all either said it or heard it at some point, but blind faith in what could happen just cannot sustain us fans forever. It is time for Fernando to repay the faith we have shown in him with an end product. Unfortunately some players just don’t fit into certain clubs, and this could well be the case. Only time will tell, but the harsh reality of the modern game is that strikers are only worth their weight in goals, and if he cannot deliver this season, it could be time for him to move on.

Ask yourselves; would we be persevering with Fernando and putting all our eggs into his basket if he wasn’t such a supremely pricey investment?

Without a doubt the stage has been set for Torres to perform. We have signed almost £80 million worth of attacking midfield talent in order to galvanize our main man, and have attempted to conform to his preferred play style to get the most out of him. We have shipped out all of our strikers bar 1 to reassure him that he is our go-to guy.

With all that in mind, the 2012-13 season is clearly the most important time in Torres’ Chelsea career, and judgement day is fast approaching. Can Fernando be the savior that we Chelsea fans believed he would be back in the January of 2011?

I hope so! And lets hope he shows his class tomorrow night as we kick-off our Champions League campaign against Serie A leaders Juventus at the Bridge!