fee, the big weight Torres has been carrying is the presence of Didier Drogba," said Cordula Reinhardt, of Spanish newspaper El Mundo Deportivo. "Following Drogba is like one of Hercules' 12 Tasks, or the idea of Thiago Messi one day following (father) Lionel; the constant comparison, comparison, comparison and even if you score two in a match, it's not enough."

The Chelsea coach when Torres first joined the club, Carlo Ancelotti, spoke of his surprise that Drogba had stayed at Chelsea last season as his presence was clearly holding Torres back (that was before Drogba helped it win the Champions League). That aside, owner Roman Abramovich can now at least no longer be accused of not trying to get the best out of his investment, after appointing Rafa Benitezof Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney (OK, so all three have played fewer games, but still). For all the suggestions that Chelsea -- whether the environment, the price tag, the coaches (four of them so far) or his teammates -- is to blame for Torres' dramatic loss of form, one thing must be remembered. It was Torres who decided to have an operation on his right knee in April 2010 as he felt that without it, he would not make Spain's World Cup squad that summer.

It was a gamble, as he told Michael Robinson, an ex-Liverpool player, on Spanish TV show Informe Robinson, to take out the meniscus in his right knee, which had been bothering him ever since he scored the Euro 2008 final's winning