Blues stumble not Torres' fault - Ancelotti

18 February 2011 16:00
Carlo Ancelotti has insisted Chelsea's record-breaking signing of Fernando Torres was not to blame for the end of the mini-revival that has seen them once again marooned outside the Barclays Premier League top four. The champions appeared to have put their worst run in the league for almost 15 years behind them at the start of 2011, winning three games in a row to climb back into the Champions League spots and spark suggestions they could make a late comeback in the title race. But the capture of £50million man Torres has co-incided with a winless - and scoreless - two matches that has all but killed off the Blues' hopes of retaining their crown and has seen them slip back to fifth in the table. Torres flopped on his debut against former club Liverpool and was arguably even worse at Fulham on Monday night. But Ancelotti was adamant that the Spain striker's arrival had not been disruptive, saying: "It is not the fault of Fernando, obviously. I think that he needs to have time. "In my opinion, he played well for 60 minutes against Fulham. He had two or three opportunities. He didn't score but he will score, obviously."

Source: PA