Story highlights
Fernando Torres disappointed after being on the bench for Champions League final
Striker Didier Drogba was preferred ahead of the Spaniard for the match in Munich
Chelsea's record signing says he will reevaluate his future at the club
President Obama watched the match with David Cameron and Angela Merkel
Chelsea spent the weekend celebrating a first European Champions League triumph after a dramatic defeat of Bayern Munich, but the English club’s record signing Fernando Torres was far from happy for the majority of Saturday’s historic win.
The Spaniard was left out of the starting lineup for the clash at the German team’s Allianz Arena, with Chelsea’s interim coach Roberto di Matteo deciding to play Ivory Coast forward Didier Drogba alone in attack.
Di Matteo’s decision paid dividends, as Drogba scored Chelsea’s 89th-minute equalizer in the 1-1 draw before converting the winning penalty in a nail-biting shootout.
Torres, who has struggled for form since joining Chelsea from Liverpool in a British-record $80 million deal in January 2011, described being on the bench for European club football’s most important match as “perhaps the biggest disappointment in my life.”
Munich mourns as Bayern blow big chance
“I thought I would play in this game and I couldn’t imagine not doing so,” the 28-year-old, who was introduced as an 82nd-minute substitute once Bayern had taken a 1-0 lead through Thomas Muller, told Spanish journalist Guillem Balague.
“But in the end I could participate and offer the team something. I’m really happy.”
Torres scored just six league goals last season, although he did enjoy a productive end of the campaign after netting a hat-trick against Queens Park Rangers and the decisive goal in Chelsea’s Champions League semifinal victory over Barcelona.
Despite Torres’ important contribution at Barca’s Camp Nou stadium, Drogba has been Di Matteo’s preferred striker in Chelsea’s recent important matches.
Jubilant Chelsea parade Champions League trophy
Torres was also on the bench for the London club’s English FA Cup final win over his former club Liverpool.
“There have been a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “There have been many times when I’ve felt lost, I was not sure what to do. I felt like I didn’t know where I belonged.
“This season I have felt things that I never had before. I’ve felt like they treated me in a way that I didn’t expect, not in the way that was spoken of when they signed me.
“We’ve had a lot of talks and we’ll talk about my future at the end of the season because the role I’ve had this season is not for me, nor is it the one I expected to play when I came here. I’m not comfortable.”
The next goal for Torres is to be included in Spain’s squad for the forthcoming European Championships in Poland and Ukraine, with coach Vicente del Bosque set to name his 23-man squad on May 27.
Torres scored the winning goal as Spain beat Germany in the final of the 2008 tournament in Austria and Switzerland, but his inability to cement a place in Chelsea’s team has cast doubt over his international future.
The former Atletico Madrid striker has been included in the world champion’s squad for the upcoming friendly matches against Serbia and South Korea, along with Chelsea teammate Juan Mata.
“I’ll be hoping to be on the list when it is announced,” he said. “I feel better than ever, hungrier than ever, but that’s what football is like – often, when you feel you’re at your best they don’t consider you.”
Meanwhile, Saturday’s final attracted the attention of some very powerful spectators across the Atlantic.
At a G8 summit at Camp David in Maryland, U.S. President Barack Obama took in the action alongside British Prime Minister David Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
It was Cameron who ended the match the happier, but the two European leaders were able to embrace at the climax of a thrilling final.
