Torres vs Drogba...Who is the Premier Leagues 2nd best striker (after Rooney)?

As I’m through talking about my own teams worsening state – for at least a week anyway – and am unable to withstand any more of our soul crushing and mistake ridden displays any further (…even if we are only 1 point off top spot…), I thought I’d jump on the band wagon and give the Drogba/Torres dilemma a whirl – especially as 2 of them were up against each other on Sunday, and one of them got completely played off the field.

Torres:
For someone with so much natural talent – beautiful touch, vision and incredible pace – he is surprisingly rather feeble on the ball. It’s plain to see that he’s not the beefiest, yet his quick feet and even quicker instinct prove his ability to maintain high levels of composure and balance; especially while on the turn, where he's at his most lethal and challenging for the opposition defenders. The ease at which he can be outmuscled is perhaps the only flaw of his game - other than playing for Liverpool and constantly sharing the pitch with Stevie Me - yet fortunately for the Scousers, it occurs sporadically. As mentioned, his pace and skill usually prevail, much to the distain to teams unable to handle him, and very rarely Nemanja, yet when he's not on his game and defenders like the Serbian are happily able to 'murder ya', then his lethal effect is softened and rather ineffective; and this is what happened against Chelsea. Of course it wasn't solely his fault Liverpool were crap, as there are 10 other players who could have helped out a little. So, if there's anything we could analyse from Liverpool's 3rd defeat in the opening 8 games, it's that a) 'Liverpool's no.9' can't do a great deal when the midfield isn't functioning, and b) 'Liverpool's no.9' can't do a great deal if the opposition defence happily slots him inside their pockets for the entire game. Some could harshly argue that c) would be that he also can't maintain his high level of flair and clinical finishing in the big games, with Sunday's game and the recent 2-0 defeat away to Fiorentina a further reference point, yet I feel he is more of a team player than people give him credit for. If the players around him are closed down and forced to play a more defensive style of football, then so will he - and visa versa. He works hard for the team, yet at times the team does not as hard for him, and so it is then you see the real weakness of his game override the strengths.

Drogba:
Class A wanker...but probably my favourite striker in the world. His slap on Vidic in the '08 final, the 'f**king disgrace' rant in last season's Champions League Semi-Final, and the endless array of Oscar winning theatrics have constantly and consistently left a bitter taste in the mouth when one refers to Didier. But, like Torres, when it's his day and all he wants to do, and is allowed to do without being aggressively and resiliently harassed all game, is play football, then he can produce a style so beautiful and unique that all you can do is stand and applaud. He is a complete striker; one with pace, power, awareness, a clinical finishing ability and strength. The last point immediately sets him apart with someone equally as incredible as Torres, and at times the facility to blend pace with strength is utterly divine and surely a most terrifying prospect for any defender. He can score with either foot, his head and from distance, yet his array of scoring styles is equally as impressive as his prolificness; not only scoring beauty's, but on a regular basis.

So...?

This final aptitude is definitely something that the two strikers share - an ability to score almost whenever, wherever and regularly. However, as an overall game player when you need your key player to constantly be in the game, even when it looks as though the team might be failing, Drogba is slightly more reliable than Torres. He is in no way more lethal or clinical than El Nino (I'm allowed to call him that even though he's not my player, right?), however his physical power can change the pace and effectively the shape of the game more effectively than the way Torres' skill can. Drogba is, without a shadow of a doubt, more dislikeable than Torres, but when he decides he wants to be good instead of spending the majority of his time on the deck every time someone brushes past him, then he's the best.