DI MATEO OUT BENITHEZ IN

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Blues told RDM he'd be axed if he dared to drop Torres

I'LL GET ME COAT ... Roberto Di Matteo was sacked after leaving £50million striker Fernando Torres on the bench in 

Former Liverpool chief Rafa Benitez has been named as interim boss until the end of the season.

Di Matteo was ruthlessly axed at 4am yesterday, hours after Chelsea were effectively knocked out of the Champions League with a a 3-0 defeat in Italy.

Abramovich still hopes he can get former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola in the summer.

Benitez is a dream appointment for Torres, who only showed his true ability when he was taken to Liverpool by Rafa.

Di Matteo decided to drop Torres after his dismal performance during the 2-1 defeat at West Brom on Saturday.

He then refused to obey Chelsea’s orders and named Eden Hazard up front in Turin.

And defeat was the final straw for Abramovich, who had been preparing to replace Di Matteo for almost a month.

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The Russian billionaire had only grudgingly appointed Di Matteo in June after failing to lure Guardiola.

A fresh approach was rebuffed following Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat by Shakhtar Donetsk last month.

And though Chelsea still hope to land Guardiola, Benitez has agreed to step in for the rest of the season with the brief of building a team around Britian’s most expensive footballer.

Torres, who is known by the other players to have the ear of Abramovich, was furious about being substituted against West Brom and in his previous game against Liverpool.

And he has been quietly lobbying for the appointment of Benitez, the man who signed him for Liverpool from Atletico Madrid in 2007.

The £180,000-a-week striker said in a recent interview: “Rafa has been the most important coach in my career. He’s the only one who knew how to improve me.”

Now Chelsea are banking on Benitez bringing the best out of a player who has hit just 19 goals in 87 appearances.

Yet while Torres might not be sorry, his Spanish team-mate Juan Mata was gutted.

He said: “Roberto is no longer our boss and I’d like to thank him for all his time with us and wish him the best of luck for the future.

“As a player he was a legend and with him as boss we won our first Champions League.”

Di Matteo said: “It was an honour for me to be a manager of a club I loved playing for and one that is close to my heart. I’m proud of the successes and trophies we won recently.

“Lifting Chelsea’s first Champions League trophy in Munich was the best achievement in club history and without doubt the highlight of my career to date, both as a player and manager. It is a memory I’ll treasure.

“I’ve a deep and unreserved passion for Chelsea and I’d like to sincerely thank all of the staff, my players and of course the Chelsea fans, for their tremendous and unconditioned support in the intense time I have been the manager.”

LMA chief Richard Bevan said: “Roberto’s passion for the club and the honesty and integrity he has shown throughout his time in charge is unquestioned.

“His record of a Champions League title and FA Cup triumph speaks for itself.”