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John Obi Mikel reveals what Fernando Torres was actually like in Chelsea training after joining from Liverpool

Charles Jones

Fri 28 February 2025 12:45, UK

Fernando Torres had a torrid time of it at Chelsea.

Fernando Torres signed for Chelsea back in 2011 for a then British-record £50m fee, but to say that things didn’t go to plan would be an understatement.

Torres struggled for the Blues, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying.

Indeed, according to John Obi Mikel, speaking on his podcast, Torres was actually a really hard worker at Chelsea.

The midfielder says that Torres tried everything to rediscover his form at Chelsea, putting in as much effort as he could, but, sadly, he couldn’t quite rediscover his best form.

What Fernando Torres was like in Chelsea training

Mikel spoke about what Torres was like in training.

The pundit says that Torres was such a hard worker at Chelsea, but, unfortunately, he couldn’t quite manage to turn that hard work into performances on the pitch.

Torres was a top player in his day, but, sadly, he couldn’t replicate his best form at Chelsea.

“I remember before he signed, I had a chat, I’m not going to mention with who, I said, are you sure? I said, yeah, yeah, yeah, we’ll, yeah, we’ll risk it. We’ll pay 50 million,” Mikel said.

“Yeah, we’ll risk it. I’m like, are you sure about this? Yeah, yeah, because he hasn’t played for Liverpool.

“And then he had that massive injury and we just thought, okay, and then the club decided to risk it. Roman obviously and Marina decided to risk it. You know, and it just didn’t work out for him.

“I remember being at the club with him at Chelsea. He was trying everything, he was at the gym, he was with physios, he was trying, he was pushing himself, but it just wasn’t happening. And I felt so, I felt so sorry for him, because he was putting in so much effort because he wanted to come back.”

Fernando Torres stats for Chelsea

Torres worked his socks off to get back to his best at Chelsea, but, unfortunately, it never quite worked out for him.

Indeed, the Spaniard was a famous flop at Stamford Bridge, and his stats tell the whole story.

Once upon a time, Torres was one of the best strikers in the world, and his numbers for Liverpool reflect that.

Ian Rush rates Torres among Liverpool’s best ever strikers, and for good reason.

Torres did have his moments for Chelsea – including that famous goal in the 2012 Champions League semi-finals.

Unfortunately, those moments were few and far between at Chelsea, and it’s fair to say that the striker didn’t live up to expectations in west London.