Chelsea 5 – 2 Leicester – FA Cup quarter final:
“I was there when…” Fernando Torres finally ended his dismal goal drought. In the FA Cup of all competitions – a place where, before Sunday 18 March, Torres had only managed to net once!
After a long wait – 24-games, or 252 games, to be precise – Chelsea fans were presented the ultimate in Blue moon’s; not one, but two goals from the stuttering Spaniard – which, along with the earlier Salomon Kalou and Gary Cahill goals, and 90th minute Raul Meireles finish, sealed Chelsea’s place in the FA Cup semi finals, as well as capped an outstanding week in their tumultuous season.
Torres did the improbable and netted what was his sixth goal of his Chelsea career on the 67th minute of the FA Cup quarter final tie (that’s a moment
Chelsea fans will want to cherish). It wasn’t a classy finish – more of a scrambled conclusion to Merieles’ cross- but it was a finish. And, just to assure the fans weren’t dreaming, Torres netted a second – Chelsea’s fourth – 18 minutes later, during a 23-minute spell of goals for both sides.
He was responsible for the assists for Kalou and Meireles, which opened and closed the game – thus making this Leicester fixture somewhat of a Torres sandwich: where assists are the bread and his goals were the filling.
Cahill's tribute for Muamba
Chelsea’s interim manager, Roberto di Matteo is reaping credit for the rediscovered form – especially as the performance was so much more
authoritative and confident as it has been in recent Andre Villas-Boas-controlled months. This is what makes this result so much more important: it is not the, somewhat expected, victory over lower league opposition; it is the call to arms of improved attitude that has been displayed in the so far, so brief di Matteo era.
Gary Cahill brought the game back to reality after his early header, as he revealed a “Praying 4 Muamba” t-shirt to honour his former team-mate, who is still critically ill in London’s Chest Hospital.
Pursuit of Nattiness 