Vicente Del Bosque gives Fernando Torres hope

Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque has said that "there is a lot of time" for Chelsea striker Fernando Torres to improve before Euro 2012.

It was revealed on Friday that Torres, 27, had been dropped from the Spanish squad to face Venezuela on Wednesday, with Del Bosque admitting that he had little choice.

"He is a lad we appreciate a great deal and it pains me to leave him out but I wanted to be fair. His performances recently have been a bit irregular," Del Bosque told The Independent.

"It is always a problem when a striker is not finding the net. It makes it difficult for them; we see that there is an issue. We have not been in contact with Fernando daily for a while but there is a lot of time and plenty of chances for him to find his touch before the Euros."

Torres has scored just five goals for Chelsea since joining in January 2011.