Torres brace fashions Chelsea win
24 Oct 2013 6:08 AM IST
Fernando Torres marked his 100th start for Chelsea with a brace in a 3-0 win away against Schalke on Tuesday as Jose Mourinho’s side safely negotiated a tough test in Champions League Group E.
Schalke were punished for slack defending as Torres opened the scoring in the fifth minute and, as the hosts pushed forward in search of an equaliser, the Spaniard netted again at the end of a second-half breakaway.
The oft-maligned forward might even have had a hat-trick, but he hit the woodwork with a header and Eden Hazard ignored the chance to pass to the Spaniard when he went through alone to seal the win late on.
Chelsea were deserving winners as they comfortably soaked up everything that Schalke threw at them in Gelsenkirchen, and the London club now find themselves level with Schalke on six points at top of the group after Basel were held 1-1 away by Steaua Bucharest in the night’s other game.
With two home matches still to come, including the return against Schalke on 6 November, the 2012 European champions look well-placed to avoid a repeat of last season’s group-stage exit.
‘I told the players after the Basel match (which Chelsea lost 2-1) that we did garbage and we had to clean it. We did it in the best possible way with two wins away and now we are in good conditions to qualify and we can also try to finish first,’ Mourinho told British Sky Sports television after the game.
Mourinho also had praise for Torres after selecting him ahead of Samuel Eto’o, saying: ‘He is a hard worker. It was a surprise for me because he is not the kind of guy who hides behind the fee Chelsea paid for him. He always gives his best and he is a player I trust and respect.’
Torres returned to the starting line-up along with German international Andre Schuerrle, while Cesar Azpilicueta was surprisingly selected as left-back in the absence of Ashley Cole.
Schalke were punished for slack defending as Torres opened the scoring in the fifth minute and, as the hosts pushed forward in search of an equaliser, the Spaniard netted again at the end of a second-half breakaway.
The oft-maligned forward might even have had a hat-trick, but he hit the woodwork with a header and Eden Hazard ignored the chance to pass to the Spaniard when he went through alone to seal the win late on.
Chelsea were deserving winners as they comfortably soaked up everything that Schalke threw at them in Gelsenkirchen, and the London club now find themselves level with Schalke on six points at top of the group after Basel were held 1-1 away by Steaua Bucharest in the night’s other game.
With two home matches still to come, including the return against Schalke on 6 November, the 2012 European champions look well-placed to avoid a repeat of last season’s group-stage exit.
‘I told the players after the Basel match (which Chelsea lost 2-1) that we did garbage and we had to clean it. We did it in the best possible way with two wins away and now we are in good conditions to qualify and we can also try to finish first,’ Mourinho told British Sky Sports television after the game.
Mourinho also had praise for Torres after selecting him ahead of Samuel Eto’o, saying: ‘He is a hard worker. It was a surprise for me because he is not the kind of guy who hides behind the fee Chelsea paid for him. He always gives his best and he is a player I trust and respect.’
Torres returned to the starting line-up along with German international Andre Schuerrle, while Cesar Azpilicueta was surprisingly selected as left-back in the absence of Ashley Cole.
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