Benitez prepared to leave out Torres following arrival of Ba

Rafael Benitez has indicated he will be more willing to leave out Fernando Torres following Chelsea’s capture of Demba Ba from Newcastle.

The club have formally completed Ba’s signing and he is eligible to make his debut in this weekend’s FA Cup match against Southampton.

Torres is not expected to feature in the game as Benitez feels the striker could do with a rest.

And the interim manager believes Ba’s arrival means the Blues will not be as reliant on Torres during the second half of the season.

Benitez explained: “We had to be sure we had enough options in attack. With Fernando as the only main striker it always a problem.

“Now we have player who can give us different options and can play behind Fernando, with Fernando or on his own. For me as a manager that is good.

“With Fernando, he can play – it’s not a problem. The question is if we want to play him in every game.

“Now we have a different option we can manage it and give him a rest.”

Meanwhile, John Terry has stepped up his training as he looks to return from a knee injury.

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