Torres (3 page)
On 19 June 2007, the agreement between Liverpool and Atlético is signed and sealed. The only thing missing is Torres’ contract with the English side. In the end, El Niño will accept a lower annual salary (but there are add-ons once certain targets are achieved) in order to be able to leave.
Sunday, 1 July: Fernando interrupts his holidays in Polynesia and returns to Madrid.
Monday, 2 July: he flies to Liverpool after a meeting with Bahia International, the agency that has represented his interests for several years. Here, he spends around 40 hours holed-up in an apartment the club keeps for such situations. It’s forbidden to go outside, go for a walk, a meal, or anything. Liverpool want to keep the transfer completely secret.
Tuesday, 3 July: from the apartment Fernando goes directly to a car parked in a space below the building, and from there to undergo a medical examination. He’s proclaimed fit and ready to join up. And then the last return flight between the city of the Beatles and the Spanish capital. El Niño, the most expensive signing in Liverpool’s history, the most expensive transfer of a Spanish footballer abroad since Gaizka Mendieta (sold in 2001 by Valencia to Lazio for 42 million Euros) first wants to say goodbye to the people he knows in Madrid. It’s only that night that a photographer gets a shot of Torres on his way to the airport …
On 4 July, the Spanish press say their farewells to Fernando. Mundo Deportivo uses the verses of The Doors song, ‘The End’: ‘This is the end. Beautiful friend. This is the end. My only friend, the end.’ A sad farewell in Spain, a welcome full of hope in England. The desire of the English media is that The Kid becomes a legend at Anfield. For Torres, it’s the first day of a new life. A truly strange day. In the morning he leaves home and in the afternoon discovers his dreams have become reality.
The culprit of his success
Conversation with Liverpool manager, Rafa Benítez
The gaffer is pretty tied up with a whole pile of things on his plate. He’s putting the finishing touches to the 2008–09 season, which finished a few days before, and beginning the next. As usual, he’ll have a summer of hard work. And this year even more, now that – thanks to a contract until 2014 – he has complete freedom regarding the buying and selling of players and in all sporting matters. He’ll have to take the right decisions and sign the right players to reinforce the Reds. To buy and sell with more than £30 million in his pocket. With this money, it’s not easy to bring in the best footballing components, but Rafa is used to challenges and overcoming the odds. He wants to do it as soon as possible so that the newcomers can make themselves at home in the pre-season and get familiar with how the club plays, in order to go for the league title, which they have not won since the 1989–90 season. It will be another ‘Rafalution’ – the Red revolution of Rafa.
In Anfield they are used to this because, since arriving in 2004 from Valencia, the Madrid-born 49-year-old has changed Liverpool. He has brought it up to date. Over two seasons, he reorganised Melwood, changing the preparations, the training, the players’ diet and the way the team plays (and whoever accuses him of being defensive, he
responds by pointing to the 100-plus goals they scored last season). He has set up a scouting and talent-spotting system that enables him to keep tabs on around 14,000 players across the globe. And above all, he has returned Liverpool to the European elite, winning the Champions League and European Super Cup in 2005 and getting to another Champions League final in 2007, when they lost to Milan. ‘He’s demonstrated that he’s hungry for success,’ said Tom Hicks, one of the club’s owners. Rafa is a man who lives and breathes football and works on football 24 hours a day if needed. As he’s said on many occasions, he wants to help create a new chapter in the legendary history of the club. Gerrard, the captain, and Torres, El Niño, are two essential elements of his sporting project. Let’s see how he came to choose Fernando …
‘Fundamentally, it was based on information in our possession, thanks to the tracking we do on many players, his excellent skills and the potential he had to develop still further over the short and medium term. Thinking about the English league and his special characteristics, he seemed ideal to be the striker of a team with the philosophy of our Liverpool FC. The truth is that he hasn’t let us down in any way.’
‘Well, it isn’t easy to summarise a sportsman, an elite player, a footballer of the highest level like Fernando. But with a bit of analytical skill we could highlight his power, his strength to withstand physical contact, to go all out – in a legitimate, sporting sense – to win a game, and with sufficient quality and skill to end up being the kind of player who can change the flow of a game.’
‘Well, I think that although everyone’s made an effort to help him, the main ‘culprit’ for his success is him, because of his great determination and his very hard work. Since his arrival he pushed himself hard to improve. He was getting more and more confident and therefore getting better day-by-day. I think that the main guiding principles of Torres’ transformation are Fernando himself and the abilities that he has shown since he arrived in England.’
‘To be very sincere, and in spite of all the earlier remarks regarding his potential and attitude, the truth is that we didn’t expect so many goals in the first year. Not even the most optimistic could have imagined it. But of course one should also say that he deserved each and every one of them, which were the result of his work and dedication and his already-mentioned desire to improve. And yes, talking of his adaptation and the ease with which he was able to do it, it would only be right to recognise that the group of Spanish players who have been with him at Liverpool have helped him a lot to achieve that.’
‘Well, one can’t know that for sure from outside. I think
that’s something one would have to ask him and only he could give an absolutely genuine response. In his immediate environment, we have been with him in this process and we can agree that, yes, he has been able to shed an excess of responsibility and that has helped him considerably with his bursting onto the English football scene as a player. Here in our group, our team, Fernando is important – but for what he does on the pitch, not for his image and what he represents or might represent off the pitch.’
‘I wouldn’t want to repeat myself unduly but it’s necessary to go back over parts of the previous answers. The secret is his work, his attitude, his willingness to improve every day. He has listened carefully and resolutely applied what the technical staff at Liverpool FC have taught him in training. To mention some aspects that I consider fundamental, his movement and calm finishing have been key from my point of view.’
‘I presume this refers to my advice, to the guidance we can give him for achieving his best possible progress. And to be very truthful, in this respect, I believe he reacts very well. He always listens and tries to apply the advice to his game in every meeting, in every training session and, finally, in every game.’
‘Once again, we’ll have to summarise. But I would pick out, basically, his ability to change the course of a match, his speed on the counter-attack and the fact that he poses a
constant threat for rival defences in each and every game he plays.’
‘It’s not going to be me here and now who describes the philosophy of the Anfield terraces, the merits which the fans of Liverpool FC value most. But taking all that into account, his performance during the first year was spectacular, although in this second year, the truth is that Fernando hasn’t had much luck with injuries. Besides that, one is dealing with a footballer who is humble and works hard, and all that makes our fans very enthusiastic about him and in him they recognise – let’s say, they identify – yesterday’s values, today’s values, and the values that are always there in the ‘Red’ story.’
‘To give a brief assessment, without going into details and looking for the appropriate adjectives, I think the first campaign turned out to be excellent in every respect, as we talked about before, and the second, which has just finished, one would have to say it could have been better, although at the same time, and to be fair, you have to bear in mind the mitigating circumstances referred to earlier. Injuries have prevented any kind of continuity and that, as we all know, is fundamental for any footballer at the end of the day.’
‘Obviously one would have to pick out some of the goals he’s scored. One is talking about a striker, and in this sense he’s brought a lot to the team, particularly during his first
year. But not being Fernando, it would be difficult to choose one or two. It should be him and only him who can give an opinion on this. No one knows the feelings of Fernando Torres more than Fernando Torres himself.’
‘From my point of view, we are talking about a normal relationship, more or less like I have with the rest of the footballers. For sure, someone could probably say that I’ve talked more with him than some of his team-mates. But that’s due exclusively to the argument that I see the potential he has, and I try to help him exploit that to the full, for his own good, although also for his contribution to the team, which is the really important thing. He’s a great lad and it’s not too difficult to have a good relationship with him.’
‘If we have to talk about him in a personal sense, as the question requires, there probably hasn’t been much change. We’re talking about someone who is pretty similar to the lad that arrived just under two years ago – a bit shy, a very good team-mate, pretty humble and, above all, respectful. As you see, one can make out quite a lot of qualities in him on a human level as well.’
‘With the optimism and hope that the situation demands. I think that as long as he stays injury-free, he could have another great season if he keeps working with the same humility, dedication and attitude that he has up until now. We have great expectations for Fernando and believe that he’s not going to let us down. He’s working on that and doing very well. Let’s hope that’s how it is …
A nice lad
Conversation with Spain manager, Vicente Del Bosque
A quiet man, a coach and father-figure, who took charge of the national team following the euphoria of the victory at Euro 2008 and who knew how to bring everyone back to earth. While not denying the legacy left by his predecessor, Luis Aragonés, he has achieved the team’s qualification for the 2010 South Africa World Cup well ahead of schedule.
The national team is the latest stage of a long sporting career: ‘We’ll see when it finishes, maybe after the World Cup, who knows … Let’s hope up until the next European Championship, if things go well.’ Then he will close the door on soccer, a world he first entered in 1 August 1968, when he left his home city of Salamanca to join the Real Madrid junior team.
At the club’s former Ciudad Deportiva training complex, he learned the skill of being an attacking midfielder from players such as Pirri, Grosso and Velásquez. He came up through the ranks with the ‘ye-ye’ generation of players from the 1960s. They were dubbed the ‘ye-ye’ generation because of the ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah’ chorus in the Beatles’ song, ‘She Loves You’, after four members of the team were photographed in Beatles wigs for sport daily,
Marca
. It was this group of players that had won the club’s sixth European Cup in 1966. He also played with the
Quinta del Buitre
(or
‘Vulture’s Cohort’ team from the 1980s, which derived its name from its top-scoring player, Emilio Butragueño). Wearing the white of Madrid between 1975 and 1984, he won five league titles and four Copas del Rey (King’s Cups). He was on the losing side in the famous 1981 European Cup final against Liverpool, which affected him deeply.
But from this disappointment he recovered well when, as manager, he brought the Real Madrid of the
galácticos
(so-called because the team included world-famous star players such as Zidane, Figo and Ronaldo) two Champions League titles (2000 and 2002), a European Super Cup and an Intercontinental Cup (both also in 2002). All in four seasons – and that is without counting the titles won in Spain.
It was a managerial skill acquired under the Yugoslav schooling of Vujadin Boskov and Miljan Miljanic (two of the managers of Real Madrid between 1974 and 1982). ‘Bigotón’ (‘big moustache’), as he was called because of the facial whiskers that give him a likeness to Inspector Maigret, knew how to manage in a calm and friendly way a dressing room where the egos of the champions were as inflated as hot-air balloons. How? Behaving ‘like a good father who draws the line, sets an example, tries to convince without imposing himself and who allows a freedom within certain limits. I don’t like to spend the whole day waving a stick.’ Secrets? ‘Don’t try to be too clever or tell the players the absolute truth every day.’ And now it’s time for the ultimate test, and perhaps the most difficult.
Wearing the national team tracksuit, he is breakfasting in the Ciudad del Fútbol de Las Rozas training complex and chatting with his assistants. Del Bosque talks about Torres – now an essential element in the Spanish forward line – in his usual good-natured way: ‘Fernando already has a brilliant career. He began very young at Atlético de Madrid, where he had been a focal figure for many years. I think
that he has benefited a great deal by going to England to play football, to a well-organised club like Liverpool, where he is alongside a manager and other players with considerable experience. He’s had very good runs, and in the national team as well, and he still has a great future ahead of him …’
Without further ado, he begins to talk in more depth about a youngster he’s known for some time, when he was an opponent in the Madrid city derby.
‘Here, Torres didn’t enjoy the best years of Atlético Madrid. He had too much pressure, was made captain too soon, he didn’t have that space as a youngster, the time to develop without feeling under pressure or protected by more-established team-mates.’
‘Likewise, I think it’s down to the environment where he is playing his football. Atlético isn’t the same as Liverpool. The environment, his team-mates and Liverpool’s presence in Europe – all that has helped him.’
‘Benítez is a manager he’s benefited from. I’m not saying that those he had before at Atlético didn’t try, but more than that, he’s now getting a more comprehensive training and he has matured.’
‘Yes, I think so. It’s clear that Gerrard has brought a lot to his game but Torres is also giving the Reds a lot more
possibilities, particularly to the players behind him. Fernando has great value – his speed and his running off the ball give options to Liverpool’s game. He’s a Number 9 that any midfielder would want to have in front of him.’
‘It’s brought different ways of understanding the game, which is important – although now there is little ‘native’ football, it’s more a mixture of styles. Nowadays one doesn’t talk of a true English style. Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester (United) and Liverpool themselves have lots of foreign players. Yes, I think that this coexistence between English and Spanish football has helped him in his development.’
‘The two are very competitive and they are clearly dominant in Europe, at least at the moment. In any case, I don’t see any great differences.’
‘He’s a player who has a dominant physical presence, who is very fast and a great goalscorer. He probably doesn’t have a great technique but he does things that are unexpected …’
‘Hitting the ball very hard, a sudden burst of speed … and then his ability to improvise in front of goal. Anything to surprise his opponent. He’s not a very orthodox player technically but overall he is in excellent shape and has scored some amazing goals.’
‘Undoubtedly. His time at Liverpool has enabled him to acquire better technical skills. This improvement has been good for him and for the other Spanish players. That speed he has must be accompanied each day by building a better technique and that’s what Torres has done. Quality? To play in the footballing elite where he is playing, in the team he’s playing in now, he wouldn’t be doing it if he didn’t have quality.’
‘He’s a modest lad, very normal and gets on well with his team-mates. He’s a nice lad, yes, very nice. He has a very stable life and that’s good for footballers.’
‘The advice one normally gives to a striker. In the national side, Fernando has some defensive duties to fulfil because they benefit greatly the rest of the team and then there are the attacking duties of a player who knows how to maximise the possibilities for all the players behind him. His speed, his movements, his mobility and his ability to lose his marker are essential in order to give our midfielders the best options.’
‘In football there isn’t just one way of doing things – it’s a mixture of everything and I believe Fernando knows how to
play in space as well as play with short passes. Fortunately, the national side mixes the two, which is the ideal.’
‘No, I don’t think it changes much. Our group is pretty integrated in that everyone has their role and, without doubt, Torres is one of the most important players in the national side, for sure.’
‘I think it’s the culmination, the final phase of a move involving the whole team. He knew how to score a quick goal and finish well in front of the keeper.’
‘I don’t know really. I can’t think of any players who remind me of him or who resemble him. I think he has a very individual way of playing.’
‘Raúl has more than 100 international caps, something which is not easy to achieve in Spain. Torres already has more than 60 and, considering his age and what remains of his football career, he could equal or surpass that. The other similar thing is the two of them come from the same junior ranks. Both are an example for younger lads.’
‘I think that he’s at a great club and that he still has challenges to meet. Without doubt, he wants to win the English Premier League title as well as the Champions League. And
also with the national side we know there are challenges ahead.’
‘Well, for us it’s exciting to think that we are one of the contenders to win it and that the individual talent of each team member, his reputation and his status could result in a collective victory. We know that a World Cup victory would bring much acclaim to all who take part.
