Euro 2012 might seemingly be the last chance for Fernando Torres to shine for Spain and repay coach Del Bosque's faith in him....
Fernando Torres might be the luckiest football player around. He won the FIFA World Cup, the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League when he was undergoing a dip in form and scoring touch. There were doubts over his inclusion in Spain's squad for Euro 2012 but injury to strike partner David Villa provided a silver lining and his performances in the last few matches for Chelsea pushed his chances further. Torres said that he was more happy with Euro 2012 call-up then first international call up. As La Roja and El Nino prepare for Euro 2012, Fernando Torres has a point to prove. Will he repay Vicente Del Bosque's faith in him?
| "Vicente has put his faith in me and now I need to show him I am ready to play whenever he thinks it necessary. I hope to be able to give the team the best of me."
- Fernando Torres
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With a disastrous opening to the season in terms of performances, Torres looked a shadow of his former self. El Nino's performances were questioned with the horrendous miss against Manchester United but he kept working hard and was eventually rewarded with goals. We must not overlook the fact that Torres was denied proper service at Chelsea like he enjoys with Spain given that the English club do not have a playmaker per say. A superb glancing header in the friendly against South Korea justifies that Torres still hasn't lost his striker's instinct. His goal against Barcelona at Camp Nou did a world of good to his confidence and not to forget that it was he who won the corner, just two minutes from time, from which Didier Drogba scored the equaliser for Chelsea against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final.
Torres opened the scoring against South Korea with a superb glancing header
The time is ripe now, Torres must repay Del Bosque's faith in selecting him. He seems to be picking up from where he stopped at scoring but he needs to reproduce that form at Euro 2012 to cement his place in the starting XI and prevent his Spain career from suffering a premature end. With the rise of talents like Fernando Llorente, Alvaro Negredo and the upcoming Roberto Soldado and Adrian Lopez, his place is threatened by other players with the Bilbao forward staking the biggest claim.
Torres adds the physical dimension to Spain's intricate "tiki taka" attacking style. He will enjoy plenty of service in the box and will not be starved of scoring opportunities.
El Nino needs to find his scoring touch quickly and deliver the goods for Spain. He has the backing of his former club team-mate Pepe Reina who believes that Euro 2012 is going to be Torres' tournament. He needs to repeat his heroics from Euro 2008 and prove the critics wrong that his manager made a mistake in showing faith in him. He needs to make this chance count or risk losing his place in the squad at the 2014 World Cup. Things are in Torres' favour at the moment as fate has played its card and now it's time for the 28 year old to do his bit...
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