Milan to sign Torres on permanent deal

Fernando Torres’ Chelsea career is officially over after the Premier League leaders announced he is to make his loan move to AC Milan permanent next month.

Torres, 30, won the Champions League, the Europa League and the FA Cup in three-and-a-half years at Stamford Bridge, but never lived up to expectations after a £50m transfer from Liverpool, failing to replicate his once-prolific scoring record in the capital.

He moved to Milan on a two-year loan in August and, although he had been strongly linked with a return to his first club Atletico Madrid in recent days, today Chelsea announced a deal had been reached for him to join Milan permanently from January 5.