Torres: I’ve learned from Blues

Fernando Torres has declared he was a “better player and better person” for his turbulent first 18 months at Chelsea but admitted he would not want to go through it again.

Torres insisted he would “change nothing that happened” to him last season because it made him “stronger than ever” and categorically denied threatening to walk away from Stamford Bridge if he was not guaranteed first-team football.

That was certainly the impression the Spain striker gave after May’s Champions League final, when he revealed the depth of his despair since his record-shattering £50million move from Liverpool a year and a half ago.

Torres’ fortunes have transformed dramatically since then, the 28-year-old winning the Golden Boot at the European Championships in June and — with Didier Drogba now out of the picture — starting this season on fire in front of goal. He looks certain to lead the line again against former club Atletico Madrid tonight in the UEFA Super Cup and speaking in Monaco, he said: “I would change nothing that happened to me last season.

“That taught me a lot of things. I learned a lot about a lot of people, in both ways. I learned a lot of things last season — good, bad. It made me a better player, a better person, and I’m stronger than ever now.”