After Liverpool offered Fernando Torres to Chelsea for £50 million in 2011, the striker’s type dropped sharply, one thing which wasn’t sudden for Liverpool’s gamers on the time.
In an alternate 2011 actuality, Liverpool supporters may have appeared upon the sale of Torres as a great transfer for the Reds on the pitch and within the boardroom.
Nonetheless, the breaking of hearts and subsequent squandering of £35 million on Andy Carroll meant that was by no means going to be the case.
For the gamers on the time, although, the lack of Torres wasn’t fairly as devastating because it was for followers.
Talking on The Overlap, Jamie Carragher defined how the membership had seen the Spaniard’s decline coming.
“When Liverpool received the £50 million for Torres, we had been like… WOW.”@Carra23 on Fernando Torres and his record-breaking switch to Chelsea ??? pic.twitter.com/Fou7xZl3nD
— The Overlap (@WeAreTheOverlap) August 26, 2024
“He began getting accidents even in his second season at Liverpool however nonetheless doing rather well,” Carragher recalled.
“After which his third season at Liverpool which might have been Rafa Benitez’s final season, he was not the identical participant.
“So that they gained the Euros in 2008, that was Torres at his greatest. He was the No. 9, scores the profitable purpose towards Germany.
“In 2010, he wasn’t within the group (for the ultimate). He got here on as a sub within the World Cup last and pulled his hamstring and I feel although Spain have gained the World Cup, I feel that was like a little bit of a nightmare.
“The entire world’s watching, he’s come on, he’s getting this tag now of being harm susceptible. Bang, he’s on for like 10 or quarter-hour, pulls his hamstring.
“Rafa then goes, Roy Hodgson is available in and he was simply in a distinct headspace then.”
Torres had a launch clause of £50 million on the time was an unlimited sum, £20 million greater than Liverpool’s earlier document sale of Xabi Alonso to Actual Madrid.
Regardless of his accidents starting to take their toll, as evidenced by him taking part in simply 9 occasions for Liverpool within the 2010/11 season earlier than leaving on January 31, 2011, Chelsea had been nonetheless prepared to interrupt their switch document.
Carragher remembered how a shock Liverpool victory beneath Hodgson helped persuade Roman Abramovich to pay the mandatory value.
He stated: “We beat Chelsea 2-0 at house beneath Roy Hodgson, Torres scored two and that was like, the deal is finished.
“So after we had been getting the £50 million from Torres, we had been like ‘wow, they’re not getting the Torres that we all know’.
“I feel we knew that on the time.”
On the night time in query, Torres did certainly rating twice and exhibited the sort of ruthlessness that despatched defenders working scared in his early years at Liverpool.
Matt Lawton wrote in his report from Anfield for the Mail: “If there stay considerations about his (Torres’) tempo, and whether or not these knee and groin issues have robbed him of the flexibility to speed up in the identical trend, he has actually rediscovered a lot that’s good about his recreation.
“The predatory instincts had been again yesterday, as was the clever motion and the contact of a genius.”
Chelsea had lengthy been desirous about El Nino and with cash to burn, could nicely have paid up in January regardless of the case.
Nonetheless, it was arguably Torres’ two objectives scored towards the Londoners shortly earlier than becoming a member of them, that helped paper over cracks and safe his ill-fated future in blue.
