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The sale of Liverpool talisman Fernando Torres for £50 million is sure to prove a tactical and financial nightmare for both sides as they prepare for the latter stages of the season and the next few years.
The purchase of Torres is no doubt manager Carlo Ancelotti’s desire to add pace, quality and attacking energy to a side that for patches of this season has really been lacking.
Ancelotti no doubt has a beady, conscious eye and one of his famous raised eye-brows (that he seems capable of keeping up for entire interviews) on the aging state of Didier Drogba and Nicholas Anelka.
However, if Torres were to move to the West of London how would Chelsea play him? In Chelsea’s current 4-3-3 formation Drogba is best used as a lone striker with Florent Malouda on the left-wing and Anelka on the right.
Taking into account that Fernando Torres, like Drogba, prefers to play alone up-front with support coming from penetrating wingers, it brings into consideration the obvious question: tactically, how can this work?
This sort of move would require Chelsea to move back to their old 4-4-2 diamond formation if they wanted to play the two strikers together. In this formation Drogba formally played a semi-holding role due to his strength, both in the air and on the carpet, and Anelka played off him due to his pace and ability to finish.
This system was scrapped due to its dysfunctional nature and Ancelotti’s knowledge that Drogba was a more reliable goal-threat than Anelka and preferred to play alone up-front.
If Torres arrived, Chelsea would have to repeat this tactical system, where Drogba would be required to play the same holding role and Torres would have to play off him due to their similarities in height and the obvious fact that Drogba is the stronger player and Torres the faster and arguably the better finisher.
Taking into account that both players are best suited to playing alone, this is going to reduce their impact as it is. To further exacerbate the situation, playing Drogba in a holding role means you effectively negate his pace and power. As a result, this will have an adverse effect on his goals to games ratio as it did with the previous formation.
On the other-hand, keeping the 4-3-3 formation Chelsea currently use, one player would be used in favor of the other, which realistically, is a waste of wage bills and talent, but would allow Chelsea to replace the declining Nicholas Anelka with Soloman Kalou or Daniel Sturridge on the right-wing who are both extremely talented, young and sprightly footballers.
Didier Drogba, despite his 33rd birthday fast approaching, is still close to the peak of his powers and has a good few years before he is scrapped from the starting line-up.
Unlike Torres, he has been at the centre of Chelsea’s style of play and the various changes of formation for years. He is, effectively, the attacking foundation of the team. Replacing him with Torres in Chelsea’s current system would be suicide, as opposed to a calculated risk.
To add weight to the lack of benefit in the deal on Chelsea’s behalf, Anelka, despite rumours he would be a make-weight in the Torres deal, has not left.
There is a possibility then, that Chelsea will be required to buy a more versatile right-sided winger who is both a good attacking player and defensive player, and more of a true winger unlike Sturridge or Kalou who prefer to sit much further up the pitch around the byline and leave the defending to Essien and Ramires who sit behind them.
And it’s best not to dwell on how much a £50 million pounds loss could be regardless of the owner.
This deal, however, also severely hinders Liverpool.
For years Liverpool did not have the funds to buy a world-class attacking player who could assist Torres and penetrate from the right-side. Ryan Babel never reached the heights he was touted of reaching and when Liverpool were ousted in midfield, Torres was isolated up-front.
This January, Liverpool were finally able to bring that world-class attacker into the team in Luis Suarez. A move that could be a masterstroke by manager and legend Kenny Dalglish and Liverpool’s ticket back to the top. However, this move was overshadowed by Chelsea’s interest in Torres and a formal written transfer request handed in by the player.
In this deal, Liverpool are to acquire a huge sum of money and effectively the ability to buy anyone they want in six months time when the Summer transfer window opens.
However, it effectively contradicts the whole idea of buying Luis Suarez and leaves Liverpool without a credible strike option for six months.
Anelka must have been considered for the role. He had a short stint at Anfield where he scored 5 goals in 22 games and managed to get into an altercation with captain Steven Gerrard during that period. Perhaps this is why the rumoured move did not occur.
Also, Anelka’s ridiculous wage demands and the alarming fact that he is also approaching his 32nd birthday, and is unlikely to stay more than a year if the move goes through, raises questions about whether the deal should take place at all.
Another crucial fact is that an in-form Torres is one of the finest marksmen in the world and not even £50 million pounds could buy you a player of such quality. Although Torres has been far from this sort of form, the addition of Suarez to the line-up is expected to prompt a change in form for Torres.
To conclude, Chelsea should keep their 4-3-3 formation. They should sell Anelka in a separate deal and look to replace him with Daniel Sturridge or Solomon Kalou. They should also look to replace Drogba with a prodigy who can take over the power-forwards responsibilities in the long-term and gradually work his way into the team while Drogba is in his twilight years.
The player that springs to mind his 17-year-old Romulu Lukkaku of Anderlecht.
The Belgian not only looks like Drogba but plays like him. He’s as strong as an ox, lightning fast and has a great tactical knowledge of the game. He’s also a proven goal-threat despite his age with 25 goals in 54 games in the Belgian Pro League, meaning there aren’t many worries about him fulfilling his potential.
Although the player is high in demand, he’s a Chelsea supporter and a reasonable offer for the youngster is expected to end in a deal.
The amount Chelsea would pay for Lukkaku would also be partly recovered with the sale of Anelka and would not go close to the £50 million Liverpool were asking for Torres.
As a result, this would allow Chelsea left-over funds to cover up their well-know defensive frailties.
Liverpool on the other-hand should have kept Torres. They could have made the calculated risk that he’ll gel with Suarez once he settles in. Due to Torres’ age, even if he fails to recapture his form, Liverpool will still be able to conjure a substantial amount from his departure if he is sold some time before his contract expires.
Liverpool also shouldn’t worry that Torres has handed in a transfer request, as he has enough love for the club to continue to battle it out in a period that, refreshingly for the Kop, looks the brightest it’s been in years.
Aborting this deal and finding alternative options and arrangements could effectively be the defining moment in these two giants rise back to the top.
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