Benitez hails Torres after Chelsea victory

Rafael Benitez says Fernando Torres’ first goal at Stamford Bridge for almost three months will give the Chelsea striker renewed confidence.

Torres, making his 50th appearance of an exhausting season, slotted home the crucial third goal to send the Blues into the last eight of the Europa League at the expense of Steaua Buchurest.

It was the Spaniard’s 17th goal in all competitions this season but the first at home since the 8-0 drubbing of Aston Villa on 23 December.

He could have added to that tally but hit the bar with a penalty – although interim boss Benitez was pleased Torres stepped up to take it.

Benitez said: “We have three penalty takers and we leave it to the players to decide.

“We’re pleased he took the responsibility – it shows he has the confidence.

“The goal was important for him but mostly for the team. He is scoring a lot in training sessions.”

Benitez was pleased to go through and brushed off concerns about the club’s burgeoning fixture pile-up.

Chelsea face a run of six games in 16 days after the international break but Benitez said his squad would cope.

He added: “We will try to manage one game at a time. I prefer to have this problem because it means we are competing. We want to be in all the competitions to the end.

“Since I came here, I think we’ve played around nine games each month. We know that can be difficult but we have confidence in the players we have.

“It’s always positive to go through. This was a great performance against a good team – everyone here should be pleased.”

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