Malaga signal late interest in Fernando Torres
Fernando Torres’s Chelsea nightmare could be close to an end after super-rich Malaga made a £23m bid to take him back to his native Spain.
The offer is less than half of the £50m that Chelsea paid to Liverpool for the 27-year-old exactly a year ago, but reflects just how far the forward’s star has fallen following a nightmarish spell which has seen him score just three goals in 31 Premier League appearances, and five in 43 in all competitions.
It is a run which means that the out-of-form Torres is far from certain to be boarding the Spanish plane to the Euro 2012 finals in Poland and the Ukraine in the summer – despite the uncertainty over David Villa’s selection following his broken leg.
La Liga side Malaga are now owned by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nassar Al-Thani of the Qatari Royal Family, and are keen to establish themselves on the global stage as well as challenge the traditional Spanish powers of Barcelona and Real Madrid.
A move for Torres would be seen as a key step forward in those aims, and with Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas growing frustrated with his forward’s poor form, the Blues could be tempted to cash in on deadline day ahead of their expected parting of the ways with Torres in the summer.
There are growing calls from within Stamford Bridge to dispense with a player who they now acknowledge it was a mistake to pay a British record transfer fee for, and with Didier Drogba set to sign a new contract as well as youngsters Daniel Sturridge and Romelu Lukaku ready to step forward, Torres’s days in the Premier League look numbered.
