Carlo Ancelotti has offered an indication of just how integral Fernando Torres has become to Chelsea, despite a lack of goals, by admitting he will consider resting the Spaniard for Champions League tie against Copenhagen, with one eye fixed on Sunday's more daunting contest with Manchester City.
Torres has yet to score since his £50m move from Liverpool in January, despite starting all five matches for which he has been eligible, form which might have put his place in jeopardy anyway. But while a game against the Danish team would appear to represent a tantalising opportunity to break that duck, Ancelotti indicated he would prefer to keep the striker fresh in the knowledge that should Chelsea prevail at home to City, the champions would leapfrog them into third place.
Ancelotti's team already have a 2-0 lead in their Champions League tie against Copenhagen after the victory at Parken last month and while he made a point of insisting his side should guard against complacency, the manager is confident that they will prevail. "I will not say who will definitely play but maybe [Torres] will have a rest," said the Italian, who is also expected to rest Michael Essien. "I want to rotate in this game. My best team is not just 11 players. We have all the players fit – Yossi Benayoun will come back to train on Thursday, which is fantastic – and we want to use them as we prepare for this game and for Manchester City."
Copenhagen, only recently returned from their lengthy winter break and a side whose two league games since the resumption of the domestic campaign have produced a win and a first defeat of the season, might have granted Torres a chance to continue his adaptation to new team-mates and surroundings. The Spaniard has played with Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka – who has seven goals in Europe this term, including both in the first leg – and Salomon Kalou to date, showing only flashes of understanding with each.
Indeed, he has not scored a senior goal since Liverpool's 3-0 win at Wolves in January. "For me, it's not important that he's not scored yet," said Ancelotti. "Obviously we want our strikers to score. It's important for strikers to do that. But, in my opinion, he's played well for the team and has done what I asked him to do on the pitch.
"The only problem is that he's a new player for us and he has to know better our kind of play. He moves well and has had a lot of chances, and been unlucky sometimes. But he will score. He has grown quickly and doesn't have a problem."
Copenhagen, however, expect Torres to feature alongside Anelka tonight. "I'm 100% sure that Torres will play, and I also think that they will try to pass to him a lot," said the coach, Stale Solbakken. "Anelka didn't play the last game [at Blackpool] so I don't think it's a bad guess to say they will start this game together."
The Danes' task is daunting. Only two sides have ever progressed after losing the first leg at home – Ajax against Panathinaikos in the 1995-96 semi-final and Internazionale on Tuesday night – since the competition was revamped. That suggests Chelsea have virtually secured this tie, with their game on Sunday appearing more awkward. While Ancelotti has been publicly dismissive of Chelsea's chances of retaining the league title having slipped 15 points behind Manchester United last month, the leaders' recent stutter has seen that trimmed to nine points. Furthermore, they have a game in hand, against Birmingham City, and are yet to visit Old Trafford. "We cannot say goodbye to the title," Branislav Ivanovic said. "We have all our players fit, a good squad, and we have to use all our power to fight until the last moment in all competitions."
Yet, even if a title defence still feels unlikely, it is vital Chelsea secure a top-four finish this term – and qualification for the Champions League – with victory in their home games against City, against whom they have lost their last three games, and fifth-placed Tottenham considered critical in achieving that aim. Should their place in the top four be secured before the end of the season and the title still be out of their reach, then Ancelotti could potentially consider resting players ahead of key contests in the latter stages of the Champions League with his priorities switched.
Maintaining momentum is also key, with confidence flowing since they prevailed in Denmark. "Copenhagen was an important match for us to move on," added Ancelotti. "It gave us confidence, optimism, not just the result. We had a very good performance and were able to repeat that against United. I've said that, for two months, we were asleep but now we are ready to fight for the rest of the season. Our moment is good. So the turning point was the game in Copenhagen."
