Fernando Torres is a world class player. Those who mock him incessantly in the British Press and elsewhere have forgotten that this is a man both on a new team and still struggling to recover from an injury that made him a shadow of the player that ruled Liverpool's Kop. He has not produced the goods for Chelsea, and perhaps he will never look right in the blue and white of West London's finest, but a quick look at this weekend's goal reminds us of what the true number 9 is still capable of accomplishing when on his day.
It was not shocking that Torres scored his 73rd minute 'icing-on-the-cake' strike against a dreadful USA squad, but what is certainly of note was the perfection of the run, touch, and finish from an out of form striker. Velero's pass was perfect (and in all due respect, he is an incredible player in his own right) and Torres smartly stayed well in front of a lazy US back four, yet it was Torres's touch and toe-finish that captured the imagination of the global audience. I myself was half expecting a heavy touch to foil the Spaniard's plans, given what he has demonstrated at Stamford Bridge the past four months (and lest we forget that his lone goal in Chelsea blue came courtesy of a forgiving mud puddle). But in a flash of an eye, Torres's lovely weighted touch with his left boot placed him perfectly between the scrambling Cherundolo and the on-rushing Howard. The finish was something out of a Filippo Inzaghi highlight reel: a cool toe-poke off the far post.
Fernando Torres isn't 'back' because of this mesmeric finish. He never left, but rather has been desperately attempting to fit in to newer, bluer, richer surroundings. If I were a betting man, I'd wager that this was just what the man needed to get his club (and furthermore his Spain) career back to its circa 2008 heights. This, and perhaps a few months of easy R&R as well as Riccardo Montolivo to pull the strings in Chelsea's midfield.
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