Hodgson: Torres will rediscover ´heyday´

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has been backed to rediscover his “heyday” Liverpool form by West Brom boss Roy Hodgson.

Hodgson managed the Spaniard at Anfield for the first half of last season, before he was fired and the former Atletico Madrid man went to Stamford Bridge for 50 million pounds.

Torres has struggled to score goals this season, but the 63-year-old is adamant the striker will return to his best, just hopefully not against his side on Saturday.

“There is no doubt Fernando will be back to what he was in his heyday at Liverpool because he is a good-quality player and also a good person,” Hodgson said.

“When Fernando scores goals again, he won’t be a different person but it might just be what he needs to get his season started kick-started, a good performance and some goals.”

“Much as I like him and wish him well, I hope his revival doesn’t start against us but, once that is out of the way, I shall be batting for him to score as many goals as he can.”

The striker is not the only man at Stamford Bridge under pressure, with manager Andre Villas-Boas facing daily questions regarding his future as the club continue to underwhelm, and his West Brom counterpart is not surprised due to Chelsea’s elevated status.

“One always has sympathy for other managers but I guess he knew, moving from Porto to Chelsea, for the enormous salary and big ambitions from the owner, that it wasn’t going to be an easy job,” Hodgson said.

“That’s basically how it has turned out. Nothing surprises me. If you look back, there have been an awful lot of managers at Chelsea in the last eight or nine years.”

“If you take Jose Mourinho out of the equation, who was there for three or four years, there has been an awful lot of turnover in terms of coaches.”

“I suppose you can’t be surprised if you go to that club as a coach that you are under enormous scrutiny every time your team is not top of the table.”

West Brom will be underdogs at the weekend, but the former Fulham manager believes his team have an outside chance of causing an upset at the Hawthorns.

“It all depends on how well we play,” Hodgson said. “With their quality, Chelsea are capable of giving very good performances and causing problems for everyone.”

“We are aware what we are up against but you win nothing on paper and with your reputation. You win if you perform.”

“We hope they have a bad day and must ensure we are at our very best if we are to have a chance.”