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| years = 2001–2007<br>2007–
| years = 2001–2007<br>2007–
| clubs = [[Atlético Madrid]] <br> [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]]
| clubs = [[Atlético Madrid]] <br> [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]]
| caps(goals) = 214 (82)<br>{{0}}{{0}}7 {{0}}(3)
| caps(goals) = 214 (82)<br>{{0}}{{0}}7 {{0}}(6)
| nationalcaps(goals) = {{0}}44 (15)
| nationalcaps(goals) = {{0}}44 (15)
| nationalyears = 2003–
| nationalyears = 2003–

Revision as of 11:12, 5 October 2007

Fernando Torres
File:Fernando torres.jpg
Personal information
Full name Fernando José Torres Sanz
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Liverpool
Number 9
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of September 3, 2007

Fernando José Torres Sanz (born March 20, 1984) is a Spanish football player. He was born in Fuenlabrada, a large suburban town south of Madrid and was the youngest player to play for Atlético Madrid and the youngest to become captain (at age 19). Nicknamed 'El Niño' (The Kid) because of his young age when he played his first match with Atlético de Madrid, Torres is a striker for Spain and Liverpool.

Torres scored 75 goals over 5 seasons in the Spanish top flight, with only Samuel Eto'o and David Villa scoring more in the same period. Torres also played two seasons in the second division where he scored 7 goals in 40 games.

Club career

Atlético Madrid

In 1994, at the age of ten, Torres scored 55 goals in his first season with an eleven-a-side team, Rayo 13, and won himself a trial with Atlético Madrid. He impressed and joined the club in 1995. After progressing through the ranks for a few seasons Torres won his first important youth title in 1998. Atlético sent an under-15 team to compete in Nike Cup Europe against youth teams from such teams as Real Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Manchester United and Juventus. Atlético won the tournament with Torres their leading player. He was later voted as the best player in Europe for that age-group.[1]

In 1999, Torres signed his first contract with the club. In 2000 he broke his leg and didn't return to action until December. Toward the end of the 2000–01 season Torres made his first team debut for Atlético. The date was May 27, 2001, the venue El Calderón and the opponent Leganés. He scored his first goal for the club the following week, in a game against Albacete.

2001–02 saw Atlético win promotion back to La Liga. The then 17-year-old Torres didn't have the best of seasons in front of goal though, netting only 6 times in 36 appearances in the Segunda División. In November Torres represented Spain at the 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship. He scored one goal in three games, but the team didn't progress past the group stage. Later that season in July, Torres won the 2002 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship. Again he scored the only goal in the final and ended as the tournament's leading goalscorer (4 goals in 4 games) and best player.[1]

2002 saw Atlético Madrid returning to the first division of Spanish football. In his first season playing in the top division, Torres did not find the transition from second tier football too much of a hindrance as he scored 13 goals as Atlético finished 12th. He also made his debut for the Spanish U21 team.

In 2003–2004 Torres made further strides as he scored 19 league goals in just 35 appearances. He was also named as Atlético's club captain aged just 19. Atlético also improved, but were pipped for a UEFA Cup place on the final day of the season as they finished 7th behind Sevilla due to goal difference in the two team's head-to-head record (2-1, 0-2).

Atlético's 7th place finish in 2004 did qualify them for the Intertoto Cup, giving Torres his first taste of European club competition. They made the final, but agonisingly lost on penalties, this time to Villarreal.

After the 2006 World Cup, which Torres particpated as a member of the Spain National Team, Torres admitted that he turned down the chance to join Chelsea after the end of the 2005-06 season.[2]

Again in 2007, Torres's future at Madrid was the subject of much speculation after Atlético's inability to secure a UEFA Cup spot. Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United were all linked with a move for the player.[3] Following the end of the 2006-07 season, reports in the English media stated that Torres was the main transfer target of Liverpool.[4]

The rumours reached such a fever pitch that Atlético president Enrique Cerezo made a statement saying "We've received no offer from Liverpool or any other club or player".[5] However, a few days later new reports suggested that Atletico had agreed a deal with Liverpool for Torres, the fee rumoured was £20 million with Luis Garcia moving in the opposite direction in a separate transfer deal.[6] Then on 30 June Atlético announced a deal with Villareal to sign Diego Forlán (seen as a potential replacement for Torres).[7]

On July 2 it was reported that Torres had cut short his holiday to fly back to Madrid to finalize the move. The next day Torres passed a medical for Liverpool and it was announced that a farewell press conference would be held in Madrid the on 4 July to bid farewell to the Atlético Madrid fans. Later that day, Atlético officially confirmed his transfer to Liverpool on their website.[8]

Liverpool

Torres is Liverpool's current record signing. Although the British media reported the transfer to be £26.5 million, Rafael Benitez confirmed in an interview with Spanish media that the deal was closer to £20 million. It was widely reported that Torres took a pay cut as part of the transfer. A drop from £103,000 a week in Spain, to about £90,000 according to The Times.[9]

On August 11 Torres made his competitive debut for Liverpool against Aston Villa in a 2-1 win. He scored his first English Premier League goal on his Anfield debut on August 19, in the 16th minute in a 1-1 draw against Chelsea; running on to a Steven Gerrard pass, he took the ball past Chelsea's defender Tal Ben Haim and slotted it into the Chelsea net.

He scored his first hat-trick for the club on September 25 in a 4-2 away win against Reading in the League Cup.[10] He put Liverpool a goal ahead at 2-1, his second put Liverpool into the lead again at 3-2, and was followed by the 4-2. He received the Man of the Match and the took the match ball as some players will do after scoring many goals in a single game.

Despite the start to his career at Liverpool, Torres is as much of a part of Rafael Benitez's rotation system as the other players and has to compete for a starting place with Peter Crouch and Dirk Kuyt as well as new signing Andriy Voronin.

International career

In February 2001, Torres won the Algarve Tournament with the Spain under-16 team. In May, the under-16s took part in the 2001 UEFA European Under-16 Football Championship, which they also won, with Torres scoring the only goal in the final.[1] He finished as the tournament's leading goalscorer (7 goals in 6 games) and was also voted the best player.

In 2003, Torres made his senior debut for the full Spanish national team on September 6, 2003 in a friendly against Portugal. His first goal for Spain came against Italy on April 28, 2004. At the end of the season Torres was chosen as part of the Spanish squad for Euro 2004. He only appeared as a late substitute in Spain's first two group games, but made the first eleven for the deciding game against Portugal. Torres hit the post in the 62 minute after Nuno Gomes put Portgual ahead on 57 minutes. Spain lost 1-0 and were eliminated.

At his first ever appearance in a World Cup finals at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, Torres scored the final goal in a 4-0 victory over Ukraine with a volley. In the second group match, Torres scored twice against Tunisia, in the 76th minute for Spain to take the lead 2-1 and then again from a penalty kick in the 90th. Torres was dropped from the team for a friendly versus Romania in November 2006, but returned to the national side for the friendly against England in February 2007, a 1-0 win for Spain.

In Euro 2008 qualifiers, he scored the first goal in a 4-0 win over Liechtenstein, shooting the ball into the top corner from 11 meters. Torres then played in a 3-2 loss to Northern Ireland. His Euro 2008 hopes took another bashing when they lost 2-0 to Sweden away. Torres was subbed in, in the 64th minute against Denmark, but failed to make an impact, his side narrowly beating Denmark 2-1 in Spain. Torres was dropped to the bench again, but came on in the 43rd minute for Fernando Morientes. He had two shots and failed to hit the target, but his side still won 1-0, from an 80th minute strike from Iniesta. Torres was totally left out of the squad in Spain's 2-0 win over Latvia, and the 2-0 win over Liechtenstein. He was brought back for the 1-1 draw with Iceland, his Liverpool team mate Xabi Alonso getting sent off. But he was back to his scoring ways with a late tap in against Latvia. Currently Spain lead the group, Torres with 2 goals, (0.36 a game).

Personal life

Torres is very good friends with Spain teammate Sergio Ramos. He has been dating childhood sweetheart Olalla since 1999, who he met at the age of eight when his parents moved to the same street as her family in Galicia. [11]

Fernando stars in 'El Canto del Loco's music video for 'Ya Nada Volvera a Ser Como Antes'.

He also has a cameo appearance in Torrente 3, a 2005 Spanish comedy where he plays himself, and diverts danger by juggling a hand grenade like a football.

His name "Fernando" has been tattooed on the inside of his left wrist in Tengwar.

Career statistics

All-Time Club Performance
Club Season England Premier League FA Cup League Cup Europe Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Liverpool 2007-08 6 3 0 0 1 3 2 0 9 6
Liverpool Total 6 3 0 0 1 3 2 0 9 6
Spain La Liga Copa del Rey - Europe Total
Atlético Madrid 2006-07 36 14 4 5 - - - - 40 19
2005-06 36 13 4 0 - - - - 40 13
2004-05 38 16 6 2 - - 5 2 49 20
2003-04 35 19 5 2 - - - - 40 21
2002-03 29 13 2 1 - - - - 31 14
(Segunda División) 2001-02 36 6 1 1 - - - - 37 7
2000-01 4 1 2 0 - - - - 6 1
Atlético Madrid Total 214 82 24 7 0 0 5 2 243 91
Career Totals 220 85 24 7 1 3 7 2 252 97
Last updated August 19, 2007[12]

Career honours

Atlético Madrid

Spain

Personal Awards

  • Winner
    • 1998 Top under-15 European player
    • 2001 UEFA European Under-16 Football Championship: Top goalscorer (7 goals in 6 games), Best player
    • 2002 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship: Top goalscorer (4 goals in 4 games), Best player

References

  1. ^ a b c "Will Torres be Kop's new God or just another Fernando?". Article on guardian.co.uk. July 4, 2007. Retrieved July 4. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "'Flattered' Villa to stay with Che". Article on skysports.com. February 6, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Premiership - Summer transfer latest". Article on eurosport.yahoo.com. June 17, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Torres is Reds' number one target". Article in the Liverpool Echo. June 20, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "Atlético deny Torres rumours". Article on skysports.com. June 25, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ "Liverpool Seal Torres Deal". Article on goal.com. June 29, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "Liverpool to land £26.5m Torres". Article on news.bbc.co.uk. June 30, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Fernando Torres has been transferred to Liverpool". Report on clubatleticodemadrid.com. July 3, 2007. Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "The forward thinking that helped bring £20m Torres to Liverpool". Article in The Times. July 4, 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ Torres caps a fine display with a hat-trick as Liverpool beat Reading 4-2 in the Carling Cup.http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/league_cup/7008013.stm
  11. ^ "Liverpool's new Spanish superstar no Spice Boy". Article on liverpooldailypost.co.uk. July 5, 2007. Retrieved July 5. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "Fernando Torres official site". Retrieved June 30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
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