Fernando Torres has hit out at Liverpool's owners for the way his £50m move to Chelsea in 2011 was handled, claiming a leak at the club turned fans against him.
The former Reds striker has been quoted in Simon Hughes' new book, 'Ring of Fire: Liverpool FC into the 21st Century - the players' stories ', talking about the then biggest transfer in British football history and how he arrived at a decision to swap Anfield for Stamford Bridge, Torres said:
"They wanted to bring in young players, to build something new. I was thinking to myself, this takes time to work. It takes two, three, four, maybe even 10 years.
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"I didn't have that time. I was 27 years old. I did not have time to wait. I wanted to win. Here we are five years later and they are still trying to build - around the same position in the league as when I left."
"It was presented as if I was a traitor. It was not like this in the discussion(s).
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"Liverpool could not admit they were doing something wrong with the whole team. They had to find a guilty one."
Torres' form since departing Anfield five years ago has been inconsistent at best, with the Spanish striker, now 32 and back at childhood club Atletico Madrid, often being targeted as a figure of fun for several long, miserable barren runs in front of goal. However, his decision to leave has been vindicated with the winning of an FA Cup, Europa League and Champions League while at Chelsea. Something he would not have achieved had he remained at Liverpool.
(H/T 101 Great Goals)
Topics: Football, Chelsea FC, Premier League, Fernando Torres, Liverpool FC