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Torres: One cool, cool cat

THE NOMINEES
Players' Player of the Year
Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd)
Fernando Torres (Liverpool)
David James (Portsmouth)
Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)
Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
Young Player of the Year
Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd)
Fernando Torres (Liverpool)
Ashley Young (Aston Villa)
Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)
Micah Richards (Man City)
+ Vote for who you think the players will select as their PFA Players' Player of the Year? Go to www.givemefootball.com to vote and you could be in with a chance of winning a signed framed shirt of the Players' Player and the Young Player.

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• Liverpool

Players

• Fernando Torres

Life for Fernando Torres is not all bad.

Even before his arrival in the summer, Torres had endeared himself to the Liverpool faithful, via a vehicle of self-promotion that could have been cooked up in a Saatchi & Saatchi laboratory. When his captain's armband at Atletico 'accidentally' fell to the floor in a Spanish league game last season a photographer's lens caught the money shot - 'You'll Never Walk Alone' inscribed in the lining.

Torres' claim of being a Gerry and the Pacemakers groupie fell on Liverpudlian ears and in its infancy were born the fruits of a love affair; Torres was the first foreign scouser since Jan Molby. He couldn't have adapted to his new surrounds any more seamlessly had he turned up on the ferry with a Terry McDermott wig, blonde muzzy and a copy of the La's eponymous debut peeping out of his back pocket.

In just his third start for the club, he showed Tal Ben Haim a clean pair of heels at Anfield, before slotting past Chelsea for a first goal in new colours. In one singular motion he demonstrated that he could not only score in England but also against the big boys.

Back at skysports.com towers a couple of journalists began to squirm over their nomination for Torres as flop of the season, as the Spaniard set about getting me - I mean them - sacked for showing a complete lack of judgement, knowledge, sanity etc...

And, save for the odd grumble from Reds fans about Rafa Benitez's infuriating habit of rotating more often than Dot Cotton's washing machine, it just got better and better for the boy wonder.

A virtuoso display at Reading culminated in a first hat-trick of the season - he has three to date - that demonstrated he is not just an arch goalscorer in the mould of Rush, Aldridge and Owen, but also a fine player.

Torres relies not only on searing pace, the type of deceptive gazelle-like stride that evokes memories of Thierry Henry but a muscular presence and almost nonchalant disregard for being booted in the air by Derby centre-halves.

His temperament appears to be that of a thoroughbred (although he could of course be bluer than Bernard Manning given he converses in Spanish) and it really is difficult, and I'm amazing myself here, to find fault with Liverpool's number nine. At least Cristiano Ronaldo has the good grace to be a bit of a winker.

I'll even let him off the fact he looks like the one Simon Cowell tries to coax into dumping the uglier members of his boy band to go solo in the X-Factor auditions. He's that good.

In last month's Merseyside derby he saw his stock rise even further with the game's only goal, before in midweek scoring a stunner in Liverpool's epic UEFA Champions League elimination of Arsenal; albeit courtesy of some criminal Philippe Senderos marking. I've seen tighter flares.

At the time of going to press Torres has scored 29 goals, is the first Liverpool player to net 20 league strikes since Robbie Fowler 12 years ago, is looking a sound bet for a Champions League winners' medal and if all else fails, he could probably model bermudas on Bondi beach.

I'm not saying he's lucky, but I bet he had Comply or Die in the sweep.

Gordon Taylor's verdict

There have been many great Liverpool number nines down the years and he has carried on the tradition this season, responding brilliantly to what was a massive challenge; all of which speaks volumes about his strength of character as well as ability.