Blues are sunk by magic Johnson

ON A day when Fernando Torres, who is rapidly going from talisman to forgotten man at Chelsea, was meant to be the story, attention has suddenly re-focused on his manager Andre Villas-Boas after a defeat against Liverpool underlined why problems at Stamford Bridge are about far more than just a £50m striker who cannot score.

Torres, who was arguably the downfall of previous Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti, cannot be blamed for this defeat — because he wasn’t even selected and played just six minutes against his former side without even touching the ball.

But Chelsea still ended the match in crisis, just as they did in January when Torres made his debut against his former club in a 1-0 defeat and began his long and slippery decline into oblivion.