Misfiring Torres to wait until 2013 for his next Chelsea goal

Fernando Torres drew another blank at Upton Park and, while he at least had an impact in the Blues’ 3-1 defeat, you can’t help but wonder when, or if, he’s going to score again in Chelsea colours.

Ladbrokes have priced it up at 1/2 that he notches in their must-win clash with Nordsjaelland but this bet should be avoided at all costs, with the 20/1 that says he’ll be shipped out before he next finds the net a far more enticing prospect.

Things started to go downhill for Torres during Spain’s World Cup triumph in South Africa and he’s been on the slide ever since.

The extent of his demise is so severe that it’s almost impossible to picture the player who once made Nemanja Vidic look like he’d downed 15 pints the night before Liverpool’s 4-1 win at Old Trafford in 2009 ever gracing the Premier League again.

With Rafa Benitez’s arrival yet to have an effect on Torres’ performances, as his appointment was intended, the best value bets revolve around him not scoring.

A generous 4/1 is available for those who fancy Torres won’t bag again this calendar year and this could do your bank account a few favours just after Christmas.

Should he fail to get on the scoresheet against the Danish minnows next time out, benching the £50m man has to be given some consideration. The only issue with this is that Benitez is far from overwhelmed with striking options at the moment.

However, should he gamble and start Victor Moses up top in place of Torres, for instance, and the Blues’ fortunes improve he’ll be out of the picture until January at least.

Such a turn of events would pump even more value into the 3/1 that says El Nino will be heading through the Stamford Bridge exit door in the next transfer window, with the same odds on offer for Colombian goal-machine Falcao to be drafted in as his replacement.

Plus, with Benitez now odds-on at 8/11 to be unemployed again by the end of the transfer window, Roman Abramovich appears ready to throw the towel in on his biggest investment during his Chelsea tenure and get his cheque book out again.

All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date