Didier Drogba says he understood why Chelsea signed Fernando Torres back in 2011.
The Blues shelled out £50million on the Spaniard who had arrived in West London with a brilliant scoring record at Liverpool.
Stamford Bridge great Drogba was getting on in years when Torres joined the Blues and although he did not depart until the summer of 2012, the Montreal Impact star knew that Chelsea were preparing for the future with their massive investment.
Drogba wrote in his autobiography 'Commitment': "As I was 32, people inevitably started to think, 'Ah, he's not what he was before, he's over the hill.'
"Suddenly Fernando Torres was signed, partly because I had been ill and partly because, as they told me, they wanted to start preparing the succession, the time when I was no longer around.
"'OK, I'm not done yet, but hey, no problem!' I felt like saying. I understood the club's point of view, though.
"They had to anticipate, and I had to accept."
Drogba returned to Chelsea in July 2014 and helped his beloved club take out the 2014/15 Premier League title under Jose Mourinho before heading to MLS with the Impact this past July.
