Spanish striker Fernando Torres has slammed Liverpool for portraying him as a ‘traitor’ following his departure to Chelsea five years ago.
The 32-year-old become a fan favorite at the Anfield before joining Chelsea in January 2011 for a then-British transfer record of £50 million.
Torres scored a staggering total of 65 goals in 102 appearances for the Reds but sparked outrage among Liverpool fans after joining Premier League rivals at Stamford Bridge.
However, in a book by Simon Hughes – ‘Ring of Fire: Liverpool FC into the 21st Century – the players’ stories’, Torres has finally lifted the lid over his ill-fated departure from the Merseyside, revealing a sequence of events including his meeting with Liverpool’s Director of football Damien Comolli in 2010, which left him unimpressed by the club’s future plans.
Torres said: “Comolli told me that the new owners (FSG), they had an idea of how to spend their investment.”
“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.
“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.”
After leaving Liverpool in 2011, Torres made over 100 league appearances for Chelsea, winning one Champions League, one Europa League and one FA Cup.
Currently enjoying spell with his boyhood club Atletico Madrid, the Spaniard also revealed that he spoke about the possibility of leaving the Merseyside club with then-Liverpool boss Kenny Daglish, but not before the club entered talks with Chelsea.
However, a source from within the club ultimately disclosed that Torres had ‘verbally requested’ a transfer and the 32-year-old feels it was a betrayal of his trust.
“It was presented as if I was a traitor. It was not like this in the discussion”, added Torres.
“Liverpool could not admit they were doing something wrong with the whole team. They had to find a guilty one.”
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