The £50 million striker scored his first treble for the Stamford Bridge outfit as the Blues hammered QPR 6-1 to follow up their magnificent draw in Barcelona
As Fernando Torres wheeled away to celebrate his hat-trick goal, the Chelsea owner’s face broke into a broad grin and he high-fived his mates in the executive box from where he was watching the rout unfold.
The Russian never talks in public but this spontaneous gesture spoke volumes for his feelings about the redemption of the club’s record signing.
The other Chelsea goals were marked by the stock Abramovich reaction to a goal from the team he created with his largesse – a beaming smile followed by warm applause.
Like the 41,000-odd other souls at Stamford Bridge, the billionaire knew the extra significance of Chelsea’s fifth goal of the game.
It proved that the cloud that has hovered over Torres for 14 months at the club has finally given way to a ray of light and the promise of brighter times ahead. Each of his three strikes was dispatched with complete conviction and certainty.
Roberto Di Matteo’s side were already 2-0 up and playing with ferocious intensity before Torres slipped into gear and moved into space to collect Salomon Kalou’s deliciously struck first-time pass in the 19th minute and then effortlessly round Paddy Kenny before angling his shot into the net.
It was a run he might not even have made a few weeks ago as the endless search for his mojo continued. The finish almost certainly would have been out of his range.
Six minutes later, Torres had his second. After Nedum Onuoha and Kenny made a complete hash of a clearance, the number nine gleefully latched on to a loose ball and lashed it into the net with his left foot.
With his confidence soaring, Torres looked like grabbing his first hat-trick since 2009 every time Chelsea marched towards the QPR goal. The moment finally came in the 64th minute when Juan Mata, his hardly any less outstanding countryman, put him through on goal with an inch-perfect pass.
The rank-and-file held their breath. So did those in a top-tier executive box. Torres opened up his body and side-footed it into the corner with the precision of a surgeon completing a life-saving operation.
The Bridge rose to acclaim one whose suffering in a blue shirt has been so public at times that it has made for painful viewing.
By rediscovering the target with four goals in five days, the born-again Spaniard has not only renewed his confidence and injected a shot into the arm of his Chelsea career but showed what a difference he could make to his club’s double dream.
As Fernando Torres wheeled away to celebrate his hat-trick goal, the Chelsea owner’s face broke into a broad grin and he high-fived his mates in the executive box from where he was watching the rout unfold.
The Russian never talks in public but this spontaneous gesture spoke volumes for his feelings about the redemption of the club’s record signing.
The other Chelsea goals were marked by the stock Abramovich reaction to a goal from the team he created with his largesse – a beaming smile followed by warm applause.
Like the 41,000-odd other souls at Stamford Bridge, the billionaire knew the extra significance of Chelsea’s fifth goal of the game.
It proved that the cloud that has hovered over Torres for 14 months at the club has finally given way to a ray of light and the promise of brighter times ahead. Each of his three strikes was dispatched with complete conviction and certainty.
Roberto Di Matteo’s side were already 2-0 up and playing with ferocious intensity before Torres slipped into gear and moved into space to collect Salomon Kalou’s deliciously struck first-time pass in the 19th minute and then effortlessly round Paddy Kenny before angling his shot into the net.
It was a run he might not even have made a few weeks ago as the endless search for his mojo continued. The finish almost certainly would have been out of his range.
Six minutes later, Torres had his second. After Nedum Onuoha and Kenny made a complete hash of a clearance, the number nine gleefully latched on to a loose ball and lashed it into the net with his left foot.
With his confidence soaring, Torres looked like grabbing his first hat-trick since 2009 every time Chelsea marched towards the QPR goal. The moment finally came in the 64th minute when Juan Mata, his hardly any less outstanding countryman, put him through on goal with an inch-perfect pass.
The rank-and-file held their breath. So did those in a top-tier executive box. Torres opened up his body and side-footed it into the corner with the precision of a surgeon completing a life-saving operation.
The Bridge rose to acclaim one whose suffering in a blue shirt has been so public at times that it has made for painful viewing.
By rediscovering the target with four goals in five days, the born-again Spaniard has not only renewed his confidence and injected a shot into the arm of his Chelsea career but showed what a difference he could make to his club’s double dream.
