Source: Daily_Mail
Can Fernando Torres ever realise his trophy dream at Liverpool?
[LNB]At Anfield, it is hard to avoid the pictures, difficult to escape the former glories. [LNB]As you walk through the main entrance and either carry straight on towards the dressing rooms or head left up the stairs towards the function suites, Liverpool's magnificent history bears down on you from the walls.[LNB]Fernando Torres knows all about it, of course. He has read the books and watched the DVDs. What, though, if he never becomes part of it?[LNB] Short on silverware: Torres has only won one trophy in his club career[LNB]'Imagine, 10 years after you stopped playing, you go back, you look around, and you are not in any pictures,' said Torres, as he talked about his career aspirations back in 2008.[LNB]'What if you have no medals, no trophies? It would be like you played for nothing.' [LNB]Torres did not come to England just to appreciate history. He came to be part of a glorious future. [LNB]And as he stumbles his way through the beginning of his fourth season at Anfield, the Spaniard has the look of a footballer lost in the dark.[LNB] Criticism: Jamie Redknapp (left) and Robbie Savage both blasted Torres' performance against Birmingham last weekend[LNB]Sky TV and Sportsmail pundit Jamie Redknapp described Torres's efforts in the 0-0 draw at Birmingham last Sunday as 'diabolical'. BBC 5 Live's Robbie Savage suggested on air that the Liverpool forward looked 'disinterested'.[LNB]Tomorrow Liverpool and Torres are at Old Trafford to face Manchester United. It is a huge day. [LNB]Without a fit and firing Torres, Liverpool's chances of emerging in credit are reduced.[LNB]Torres is undoubtedly not match sharp. Injury ended his last season prematurely and sources at Anfield say he is still feeling his way and learning to trust his body again. [LNB]Body language: Is it a fear he was wrong to stay at Liverpool that is affecting his performances? [LNB]Elsewhere in Barclays Premier League circles, opinion is split.[LNB]It is widely known that the 26-year-old considered his future during the summer. Some observers feel he looks like a player with a lot on his mind.[LNB] One Premier League assistant manager told Sportsmail this week:'People talk about body language and as a coach it is something youlook for. [LNB]'I have to say, with Torres it stands out a mile at the moment. It's just not right. [LNB]'The question is, is it because he is unfit or because he feels he doesn't want to be there?[LNB]'Sometimes, if a player has had an injury it can take ages for him to believe he is fit. [LNB]'Even if the doctors tell him the scans are clear, he can take a while to really feel good.[LNB]'Eitherway, Torres just looks unrecognisable. And Liverpool's problem is thatif you take him and Steven Gerrard away, then they look an averageside.'[LNB]It is hard to believe Torres is in his fourth Liverpool season now.It seems only yesterday that he made a mug of Chelsea defender Tal BenHaim to score his first of his 57 Premier League goals, at Anfield inSeptember 2007.[LNB] Undoubtedly, his time here has been successful. [LNB]He has scored 73 goals in all competitions and his record in big games is good. He has, for example, scored in three of the five matches he has played against tomorrow's opponents.[LNB]United defender Rio Ferdinand embarrassed by Torres as Liverpool won at Anfield last season said this week: 'He is a great player and has proved that to everybody.[LNB] 'Two months ago everyone was saying what a world-class player he is and one of the best strikers in the world, so to become a bad player overnight just doesn't happen.[LNB]'I heard the pundits the other night hammering him, but he has been injured and you can't expect him to be the same straight away. [LNB]'I'm under no illusions that I will be coming up against a top class player.'[LNB]Torres remains liked and, more importantly, feared by his peers in England.[LNB]Feeling small: Torres career at Atletico was overshadowed by Real's achievements[LNB] Sadly, though, he has won no trophies. His only career domestic medal came from a Spanish second division success with Atletico Madrid in 2002.[LNB]This, perhaps, is one possible cause of his current malaise. [LNB]Torres spent his childhood in Madrid watching the big team down the road win all the prizes. [LNB]Now in the form of United it is happening again.[LNB]As he told Sportsmail's Martin Samuel in a revealing interview two seasons ago: 'It was very tough supporting Atletico as a boy. [LNB]'Sometimes Atletico felt small because next door was Real Madrid with all the trophies and the fame.'[LNB]Torres has also said that the trophy he covets above all others is the Champions League. [LNB]He has played in one semi-final with Liverpool. This season they are not even in the competition. [LNB]It is no wonder that people feel the same frustrations that almost drove Gerrard into the arms of Chelsea in 2004 are now weighing heavily on the striker's mind.[LNB]Another Premier League coach said: 'I feel I have been watching a different striker for a long time, since before the World Cup. [LNB]'To me, he looks like he doesn't want to be there. Players play their best football when they feel utterly and 100 per cent right in their environment.[LNB]'It could be that he is frustrated with his situation. It could be mental or physical. I would say it's quite possibly both. [LNB]'One thing people haven't mentioned, though, is how much Liverpool miss Javier Mascherano in midfield. That has left Gerrard playing a bit deeper and the effect of that on Torres is huge. [LNB] Missing Mascherano? Steven Gerrard has had to drop deeper since the Argentine's departure, which has affected Torres' game[LNB]'I know Gerrard is not a striker but he and Torres when things are going right for Liverpool effectively play as a partnership.[LNB]'They are a great foil for each other and, as a coach trying to stop them, it's daunting. [LNB]'Torres stretches your defence in the corridors with his runs and then Gerrard gets into the spaces and ahead of the ball.[LNB]'If those two are doing that, then they will get 30 goals between them over a season and that will get you halfway to the top four on its own. This season, that is not happening.'[LNB]The statistics back up this particular point. [LNB]In the 2008-09 season that saw Liverpool finish second to United in the Premier League, Gerrard and Torres scored 30 League goals between them. [LNB]Gerrard contributed 16 of them and also outscored Torres in the Champions League by seven goals to two.[LNB]Last hope: If Roy Hodgson cannot end the quest for trophies, will Torres stay? [LNB]Certainly, that was evidence of their partnership at its very best. Currently, Liverpool look disjointed and Torres looks miserable.[LNB]Torres has endured lean spells before and emerged as good as ever. [LNB]In 2005-06, for example, he scored just 13 times in 36 games for Atletico while the following season he managed a relatively meagre 14.[LNB]Interestingly, though, Torres spoke publicly back then of there not being enough quality around him, something he hinted at with regard to Liverpool in an interview towards the end of last season.[LNB]One does wonder where he will see his future if Roy Hodgson's Liverpool do not provide him with the platform he so craves.[LNB]During his time on Merseyside, Torres has endeared himself to Scousers by developing an understanding of what makes them tick. Not all continental players do this.[LNB]'I know that the biggest match of any season is against United,' Torres has said.[LNB]Crucially, however, he has also observed: 'In Liverpool, people work all week and then on Saturday they want to go to the stadium and watch the best team in the world.'[LNB]Is this likely to happen during Torres's time here? Will he merit a photograph on the walls of the Anfield corridors? [LNB]As he goes in search of form and confidence at Old Trafford tomorrow, these questions must trouble him greatly. Man United v LIVERPOOL: Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard return for rival clashGerrard and Torres can fire Liverpool to victory at United, insists HodgsonThere's nothing bigger! Ferguson hails Man United v Liverpool showdownLIVERPOOL FC
