James Ducker at Anfield
Gareth Southgate, the Middlesbrough manager, had a point when he suggested that it was not simply because of Fernando Torres that his team lost at Anfield, but another way of looking at it is that Liverpool would almost certainly not have won on Saturday had the Spain striker not been on the pitch.
Torres may have claimed his first Premier League hat-trick, and second of his Liverpool career thanks, in part, to two appalling individual errors, but as he walked off the pitch clutching the match-ball that Lee Mason, the referee, had initially appeared reluctant to hand him before common sense prevailed, two questions sprung to mind.
Without Torres, precisely what kind of mess would Liverpool have found themselves in this season, and, moreover, just how good can the former Atlético Madrid forward become?
Rafael BenÍtez, the Liverpool manager, attempted to answer the second question by suggesting that Torres still has some way to go before people start to see the best from him.
But, in response to the first question, it is probably a reflection of how poor Liverpool have been that, despite possessing a striker who has plundered 21 goals from 27 starts in his debut campaign in England, the team should still find themselves facing a frantic fight to finish fourth in the league and clinging to the hope of salvation in Europe.
“Maybe people will look at it as a successful season for me, but I’ll only consider the season a success if we win something,” Torres said. “I’m 23 and I’ve never won a medal. The only time I did was when I was an Under16 and Under19 player [at Atlético] but that’s a long time ago. I’d prefer to be remembered as someone who helped Liverpool to win trophies than a great goalscorer. It’s not about me, it’s about the team.”
While Sami Hyypia has no doubts that Torres can emulate the very best, the defender has been surprised by how quickly his teammate has adapted to the Premier League. “Fernando has everything in his locker,” Hyypia said. “Liverpool have had some great goalscorers in the past and he might join them and become one of the most successful ones if he continues in this way. Having watched him play in Spain, I didn’t expect him to be that physical, but he won’t shirk from any challenges and always gives the defenders a very hard time.”
It has become a familiar failing of Liverpool under BenÍtez to excel in Europe, only to fall flat in the league a few days later and so, having overcome Inter Milan, the runaway Serie A leaders, in the Champions League at Anfield on Tuesday, it surprised no one when Middlesbrough took the lead through Tuncay Sanli.
Middlesbrough were a threat all game. Well organised and determined, they are an entirely different proposition than during the first few months of the season, but three rushes of blood to the head cost them dear.
Julio Arca’s suicidal back header presented Torres with his first goal at a time when Middlesbrough were under next to no pressure, but the mistake prompted them momentarily to lose their shape and a minute later the Liverpool striker had made it 2-1 with a wonderful 20-yard strike.
Worse was to follow in the second period when, inexplicably, Mark Schwarzer, the Middlesbrough goal-keeper, ran out to clear the ball and got himself in a dreadful mix-up with David Wheater, allowing Torres to stroke the ball home for his hat-trick.
Within minutes of Stewart Downing pulling a goal back, Jeremie Aliadière was sent off for slapping Javier Mascherano in the face after reacting angrily to the Liverpool midfield player cheekily pinching his nose.
Steven Gerrard hit a post with what would have been a sumptuous free kick, but no one was going to steal Torres’s thunder.
Torres may have claimed his first Premier League hat-trick, and second of his Liverpool career thanks, in part, to two appalling individual errors, but as he walked off the pitch clutching the match-ball that Lee Mason, the referee, had initially appeared reluctant to hand him before common sense prevailed, two questions sprung to mind.
Without Torres, precisely what kind of mess would Liverpool have found themselves in this season, and, moreover, just how good can the former Atlético Madrid forward become?
Rafael BenÍtez, the Liverpool manager, attempted to answer the second question by suggesting that Torres still has some way to go before people start to see the best from him.
But, in response to the first question, it is probably a reflection of how poor Liverpool have been that, despite possessing a striker who has plundered 21 goals from 27 starts in his debut campaign in England, the team should still find themselves facing a frantic fight to finish fourth in the league and clinging to the hope of salvation in Europe.
“Maybe people will look at it as a successful season for me, but I’ll only consider the season a success if we win something,” Torres said. “I’m 23 and I’ve never won a medal. The only time I did was when I was an Under16 and Under19 player [at Atlético] but that’s a long time ago. I’d prefer to be remembered as someone who helped Liverpool to win trophies than a great goalscorer. It’s not about me, it’s about the team.”
While Sami Hyypia has no doubts that Torres can emulate the very best, the defender has been surprised by how quickly his teammate has adapted to the Premier League. “Fernando has everything in his locker,” Hyypia said. “Liverpool have had some great goalscorers in the past and he might join them and become one of the most successful ones if he continues in this way. Having watched him play in Spain, I didn’t expect him to be that physical, but he won’t shirk from any challenges and always gives the defenders a very hard time.”
It has become a familiar failing of Liverpool under BenÍtez to excel in Europe, only to fall flat in the league a few days later and so, having overcome Inter Milan, the runaway Serie A leaders, in the Champions League at Anfield on Tuesday, it surprised no one when Middlesbrough took the lead through Tuncay Sanli.
Middlesbrough were a threat all game. Well organised and determined, they are an entirely different proposition than during the first few months of the season, but three rushes of blood to the head cost them dear.
Julio Arca’s suicidal back header presented Torres with his first goal at a time when Middlesbrough were under next to no pressure, but the mistake prompted them momentarily to lose their shape and a minute later the Liverpool striker had made it 2-1 with a wonderful 20-yard strike.
Worse was to follow in the second period when, inexplicably, Mark Schwarzer, the Middlesbrough goal-keeper, ran out to clear the ball and got himself in a dreadful mix-up with David Wheater, allowing Torres to stroke the ball home for his hat-trick.
Within minutes of Stewart Downing pulling a goal back, Jeremie Aliadière was sent off for slapping Javier Mascherano in the face after reacting angrily to the Liverpool midfield player cheekily pinching his nose.
Steven Gerrard hit a post with what would have been a sumptuous free kick, but no one was going to steal Torres’s thunder.
No comments:
Post a Comment