Torres could be used as a bargaining chip for Falcao deal

Roman Abramovic appears to be losing faith in his 50 million pound man and could offer Fernando Torres to Atletico Madrid as a sweetener to secure the services of Radamel Falcao.

Torres has been under constant scrutiny since he made the switch from Anfield to Stamford Bridge, and the signing of Demba Ba from Newcastle this month has been the ultimate hammer-blow to the Spaniard's already fragile confidence and he is said to be more than willing to pack his bags and head home to where his career started.

The 28-year-old enjoyed his best years at Vicente Calderon stadium after he worked his way up from the youth set up, and he went on to play almost 250 first team games for Atleti and eventually became captain whilst establishing himself as one of the star forwards in European football.

When he sealed a move to Liverpool in 2007 he continued his fine form and set the Premier League alight with his blistering pace, his incredible energy levels and his composure in front goal. He bagged 65 goals in his 102 league games for the Reds and earned him a staggering £50m transfer to Chelsea, where it all went downhill.

His critics would argue that his form dropped significantly before the move to the capital, but no one would have expected that someone of his quality and stature would only score once in 14 league games in his first season.

His form has remained in a poor state and his progression has halted as a result, but 14 goals this campaign under his former gaffer Rafa Benitez suggests that the talent is still there, albeit hidden under the massive expectations caused by the humongous fee. However, Torres is still unhappy at the Bridge according to many, and the lure of returning to where the magic once happened for him seems to be too much.

Falcao, possibly the greatest centre forward in world football right now, is in high demand and has admitted that a move may well be on the cards at the end of the season, so could this be a bargaining chip from Mr Abramovic?

Follow @PattyGlee