Posted on: Sat 16 Jul 2011
Today marks the start of a busy couple of weeks for the Blues, with a trip to Portsmouth this afternoon followed by departure for our Asian tour tomorrow.
For Fernando Torres, it comes after a lengthy break from football at the end of last season, but a return to goalscoring form against Wycombe Wanderers at Cobham on Tuesday.
The striker is now looking ahead to an exciting pre-season period starting at Fratton Park this afternoon before games in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Hong Kong, where we will compete for the Barclays Asia Trophy.
It is a competition the Spaniard knows well, having taken part with former club Liverpool upon signing there in 2007, losing a penalty shootout in the final against... Portsmouth.
'I missed a penalty, and the other one was Yossi Benayoun,' Torres smiled as he recalled the situation in Hong Kong. 'I remember it because I didn't play in the first game against South China because I didn't have the clearance from my transfer, so I couldn't play in the tournament but I travelled just in case, not expecting to play in that game.
'I was in the stand and was sitting in my seat to watch the game with Portsmouth when some people from Liverpool called me back and said I could play, so I changed, played and missed a penalty so we lost the final to Portsmouth.'
Despite the disappointment, he began that season in sparkling form, opening his Anfield account by netting against us in a 1-1 draw, and he believes competitive football in pre-season can only help your readiness for when things get going in the Premier League.
'It's good to have a competition, the main thing is to be fit and find your good form so you can start the season as well as possible,' said the 27-year-old. 'It is good to play against good teams, and in Hong Kong we will also play a Premier League team and it is natural to be more focused on the game. We want to win and show we are better than the other teams, it is the first challenge to balance if the season is going to be good or not.'
On a personal level, Torres has begun pre-season well with a tidy finish against Wycombe to show for 45 minutes of work, the profit he believes of a timely rest.
'I'm feeling good, it's a new season, a new start for me,' he said. 'It was a difficult four months last season but now I am already settled and happy, feeling sharper and I could enjoy my holidays in the summer after five years without a break so I am happier after some time with my family and a rest and I feel ready to start the season.'
The former Atletico Madrid man also had encouraging words for Benayoun, who netted a cheeky firstpre-season goal on Tuesday.
'Yossi was unlucky last season with the injury he had but now he is fully recovered and you could see the other day his quality, so now it is just a matter of form and he is back,' he said.
The Portsmouth game is live on Chelsea TV with free build-up for all Sky Digital subscribers between 2.30pm and 3pm.
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