Europe League results: Chelsea 3-1 Rubin

Misfiring Chelsea striker Torres proved the unlikely hero as the Blues outplayed Rubin 3-1 in Europa League quarter-finals first leg.

The brace from the Spaniard and Nigeria forward Moses helped Chelsea to a victory, but the visitors have clawed one back in the second half to retain the chances of making it thorough to the next sage.

Torres scored the opening goal, taking down a long ball by David Luiz and bundling it into the net in the 16th minute of the game. Moses doubled Chelsea lead with a perfectly placed shot into the top left in the 32nd minute. Natcho pulled one back for Rubin, scoring from a penalty spot minutes before the half-time whistle. Torres completed the rout with a close-range header in the 70th minute.

Benitez praised Torres performance, by saying: “It’s good for his confidence. His work-rate was really good, I’m pleased for him. I have said before, he’s training well. It was a question of time. He scored two goals today and hopefully it will be the same in the next game. You could see his touch of the ball was much better after the goal, because of the confidence he had.”