A waste of money?

It has been 366 days since Chelsea smashed the British transfer by shelling out 50 million pounds to acquire Fernando Torres from Liverpool.

Disgruntled with the direction the club was heading down, El Nino shocked Merseyside with a written transfer request at the eleventh hour. At the same time down on Tyneside, Geordie nation was stunned to learn that home grown prodigy Andy Carroll had done the same. The fee of 35 million pounds from Liverpool was too good to pass up for the Magpies.

One day and a staggering 85 million pounds spent, both players became forever linked.

Since the mega-deal Chelsea has won 21 of 38 league matches for a total of 72 points. The team has scored 68 goals in that time, but only three have come off the boot of Torres. It took almost three months for the striker to notch his first for the club, coming at home to West Ham. But a water-clogged pitch deserves most of the credit. Five goals in 41 appearances is quite simply not a good enough return on investment.

A thigh injury pushed back Carroll's debut to March when he came off the bench against bitter rivals Manchester United. It took a month to open his Liverpool account, with a two-goal performance versus Manchester City. Each strike was a testament to why manager Kenny Dalglish rated him so highly. Liverpool has gone through a revival of sorts, compiling 18 wins from 37 matches in the league and 63 points. Carroll has made 37 total appearances, registering seven goals in the process. Had the club not purchased Luis Suarez beforehand their record would be a lot worse.

On one side of the coin, Torres is a proven goal scorer at this level and scored 76 times in 135 matches for Liverpool. Injuries saw a steady decline in form, but you could never question his skill. Since the transfer things have gotten worse. Whether it is lack of confidence or the added pressure due to his record-breaking price tag, Torres is a shadow of his former self.

On the flip side Carroll has never really proven to be a consistent goal threat in the Premiership. Prior to last season, the former Newcastle striker had only 22 appearances in the top-flight with three goals to his name. It was in the Championship where Carroll came into the spotlight, helping the Magpies win the league and gain promotion with 17 goals. That was followed by 11 goals in 19 matches before moving to Liverpool. The potential is obvious, but people expect instant results and unfortunately they have been absent.

The most obvious problem for both players is the inability to fit into their team's system. Torres needs to play off a secondary attacker to be effective; coincidentally his best performances have come when able to link up with Juan Mata who provides the same type of service as Steven Gerrard. The effort is there; unfortunately the ball is not crossing the line.

Liverpool is full of talented distributors in midfield, but the need for a true winger was essential to get the best out of Carroll. Stewart Downing was purchased to provide adequate service from the flanks, as was left-back Jose Enrique. Unfortunately neither has been able to get into an offensive rhythm with Carroll. A combination of poor service and the striker's inconsistency to win his aerial battles has lead to a poor goal production.

You could point out that both Torres and Carroll have been a bit unlucky. The Englishman has seen over a half dozen headers hit the woodwork, while the Spaniard has been denied by some stellar goalkeeping. Sometimes a bit of luck is needed.

El Nino now spends most of his time on the bench. Even now with Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou away at the African Cup of Nations, Torres has not done enough to merit a starting spot.

More often than not Chelsea's number nine has sabotaged any momentum gained. He scored a wonderful goal against Manchester United at Old Trafford, but it was overshadowed by a comical gaffe. The miss has become infamous, played on blooper reels worldwide. The reaction that followed spoke volumes to his frustration, collapsing to the ground in disbelief.

One week later at Swansea City, Torres scored for the first time in back-to-back matches for Chelsea. But a red card from a clumsy two-footed challenge resulted in a three-match ban, putting an end to his brief streak.

Chants of "what a waste of money" continue to rain down on the Spaniard, most recently at Carrow Road following another goalless performance against Norwich City. Two weeks prior in the FA Cup, Pompey supporters jeered him with calls to take the striker on loan.

Carroll has never really enjoyed a good run of form, with his performances being sporadic at best. Dalglish prefers to use Suarez up front which has limited the big man to a place on the bench. After Suarez was handed an eight-match suspension the opportunity to silence his critics was made available, yet the results have been the same. Liverpool is simply trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

It is obvious that both have been major busts. At 23, Carroll still has the potential to get better. Torres turns 28 in March and is arguably at the peak of his football career, although the Spaniard is the better player at present in comparison. Chelsea are an aging bunch that are in desperate need of younger reinforcements. Roman Abramovich has never been shy to cut his losses; no player should feel safe this summer.

Last Saturday, Carroll contributed his most important effort of the season in the FA Cup victory over rivals Manchester United at Anfield. It was another goalless performance but the striker came up big three minutes from time to set up Dirk Kuyt for the winner. He was also a major part of the first goal, causing interference on David de Gea for Daniel Agger to head home from a corner kick. You could see some confidence slowly creep back into Carroll's stride before the final whistle.

Then on Tuesday at Molineux the striker scored the match winner in a 3-0 thrashing of Wolves. It might have taken a year but Carroll could be on the verge of a rebirth; better late than never.

Rumours have been circulating Liverpool are trying to unload their most expensive transfer. Talk of a 10 million pound deal back to Newcastle was mentioned and then squashed by both clubs.

It is almost impossible for Chelsea to move Torres without suffering a substantial financial loss. Plus, who would want to purchase a striker that struggles to score goals? The Blues' chemistry has obviously been affected negatively since the Spaniard's arrival. Overall Liverpool are a better side without Torres; the money generated from the sale not only paid for Carroll but more importantly Suarez.

What can we learn from all this? Never buy in the winter window because you end up paying a premium rate for an inferior product.

Thomas Michalakos is a former associate producer with Sportsnet's Soccercentral and writes the weekly blog Soccerholic365. Follow Thomas on Twitter.