Chelsea and Spain striker Fernando Torres is in limbo having been branded as unwanted by both his parent club and Italian giants AC Milan, where he is just six months into a two-year loan deal. The 30-year-old has scored only once in ten appearances having struggled for opportunities at the San Siro, where the Rossoneri are apparently keen to get his £175,000-a-week wages off the books.
Rumours have been flying around - without any confirmation from Milan, it should be stressed - that Chelsea would recall Torres from his current loan deal before letting him leave on a costless transfer this January transfer window. However, Blues boss José Mourinho has rubbished reports that he would return to the London club.
“No. We have no space," he said in a press conference before Chelsea's Premier League match against Hull this weekend. "Nobody from AC Milan has been in contact with us about that possibility so probably nothing is true.”
Boyhood club Atlético Madrid had been lined up as a potential destination for the misfiring £50million man, but Diego Simeone is also said to be keeping tabs on Bayern Munich's Swiss attacker Xherdan Shaqiri and Arsenal man Lukas Podolski as he looks to ease the pressure on top scorer Mario Mandžukić.
However, Milan's Serie A rivals Napoli have emerged as front-runners in the race for his signature, where Torres would link up with former manager Rafa Benítez. With Milan not competing in Europe this season, Torres would be available for their Europa League campaign and Benítez managed the forward through his last true spell of consistent form at Liverpool.
Whatever happens, it is unlikely that the unfortunate Torres will ever pull on the blue shirt of Chelsea again. With Diego Costa finally filling the void left by Didier Drogba - with the man himself providing ample backup alongside Loïc Rémy - Chelsea will be willing to take a massive loss on Torres in terms of his transfer fee.