Fernando Torres, suddenly oozing confidence in front of goal, netted his first Chelsea hat-trick as the Champions League finalists capped a sensational week by routing Queens Park Rangers 6-1 in the Premier League on Sunday.
Torres, a forlorn figure at Stamford Bridge for much of the 15 months since his $50-million move from Liverpool, produced three incisive finishes to add to his late goal at theNou Camp against Barcelona on Tuesday that eased Chelsea into a Champions Leaguefinal meeting with Bayern Munich.
The Spaniard struck twice in the first half after the home side had led through Daniel Sturridge’s strike after just 46 seconds and John Terry’s header.
Torres completed his hat-trick on 64 minutes by side-footing past Paddy Kenny from Juan Mata’s pass, a goal that had beaming owner Roman Abramovich high-fiving the fans around him.
Substitute Florent Malouda added a sixth with 10 minutes left before Djibril Cisse netted for the relegation-threatened visitors.
Victory lifted Chelsea above Tottenham Hotspur into fifth place on 61 points, one point behind Newcastle United. Spurs, on 59 points, will leapfrog their London rivals and Newcastle if they win at home to struggling Blackburn Rovers later on Sunday (3pm GMT). — Reuters