MANCHESTER – Carlo Ancelotti defended his decision to pick Fernando Torres despite another disappointing display from the Spanish striker as Chelsea crashed out of the Champions League. Torres, who has not scored in more than 11 hours of football since joining Chelsea for a record £50 million in January, was substituted at half-time as Manchester United powered into the semi-finals with a 2-1 victory. Ancelotti was unrepentant.
“I thought a lot of time to take this decision,” Ancelotti said. “I preferred to start with Fernando for this kind of game. But Didier played very well in the second half.” Ancelotti rejected suggestions from Sir Alex Ferguson that it would have been impossible for the Chelsea coach not to pick Torres given the club’s record outlay on the player. “This is not true,” he said. “I picked Fernando because I felt his skills and ability could be good for us.”
