Chelsea vs. Liverpool: Fernando Torres Will Fail Miserably Against Former Club

Chelsea star Fernando Torres will badly under-perform against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, in a match that the Blues have to win to remain in the Premier League title race.

A loss has the potential to drop Chelsea at least 10 points behind Manchester City at the top of the league table.

About a week after being booed by England fans during the nation's international friendly versus Spain at Wembley Stadium, Torres will have a massive challenge facing him on Sunday in a game that Chelsea badly needs.

In an article in The Guardian, Torres was quoted as saying:

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"Against Liverpool we cannot allow ourselves to drop more points. It will be special. Liverpool are a team in transition and you can't do that overnight. You need time. They've made an effort economically and, like any project, it needs time to bed in."

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Speaking of projects, Torres has been an attacking project during his brief career at Chelsea. Blues fans never would have imagined that Torres would have such trouble scoring goals in the Premier League, let alone worry about him making the starting XI on a consistent basis.

In the eight league games Torres has played this season, he has started six of them.

In those eight league games Torres has just two goals. That's not good enough for someone who cost the club £50 million in the January transfer window.

Why is Torres going to fail to score against Liverpool? Well, for starters Liverpool's defense has played quite well all season.

Liverpool has not allowed more than one goal in a game in all competitions since September 18 against Tottenham. That run of impressive defense includes a 1-1 draw with Manchester United.

Chelsea fans have applauded Torres' progress this season, but much of his success has come against some very weak teams during UEFA Champions League play. 

The Spanish striker has not fared well against Premier League opponents.

Torres' debut with Chelsea last season came against Liverpool, a match the Blues lost and in which Torres struggled.

Now Liverpool is stronger, especially in the midfield, with the summer additions of Charlie Adam, Stuart Downing and Jordan Henderson. Jose Enrique has also been a spectacular addition at left-back.

Torres has just three goals in 22 appearances, and won't score on Sunday versus his former club. The pressure to succeed is too large for Torres in a match like this.

He will try too hard on Sunday to be the hero and win important three points for Chelsea. The Liverpool fans will boo him with every touch of the ball, and he will not be mentally right for this game.

Liverpool will cause real problems for a lackluster Chelsea back four, and Torres will not be able to save his team from defeat in the biggest game at the Bridge thus far this season.