Source: Daily_Mail
No pain no gain for Torres as Reds hero reveals he nearly missed United clash
Fernando Torres has admitted he played through the pain barrier to fire Liverpool to a crucial 2-0 victory over Manchester United.
A groin injury limited Torres to just two light training sessions last week and he was only told on the team coach to Anfield that he would start the game.
The gamble by manager Rafael Benitez paid off handsomely, though, as Torres struck the opener and David Ngog added a late second to end a run of four straight defeats.
Fernando Torres
Taking one for the team: Torres scored Liverpool's decisive first goal against United
It was Torres’s ninth goal of the season but he admitted: 'I wasn’t really at my best.
'We knew before the game I couldn’t play to 100 per cent because I had some pain in some actions, but in games like this the pain doesn’t matter.
'We knew before the game that we had to win and we did it.'
The Spain striker, who easily brushed off a challenge from Rio Ferdinand before beating United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar at the near post, added: 'I feel a bit of pain when I shoot across so I could only shoot towards the near post — it was the only thing I could do.'
