You owe us, Fernando

Kop deserve another year from Torres, says Aldridge

Last updated: 27th July 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

You owe us, Fernando

Torres: staying or going?

Personally, I think Fernando Torres owes Liverpool 12 months. He came from Athletico Madrid, we have put him on a higher pedestal.

John Aldridge
Quotes of the week

SKY SPORTS ON SKY
From football to fishing and everything in between, including cricket, rugby, boxing, golf and tennis - there's some amazing coverage coming up on the five Sky Sports channels. Plus, with the launch of Sky Sports News HD this summer, all five channels will soon be available in stunning high definition, only with Sky. Click here for more

Related links

Teams

John Aldridge believes Fernando Torres owes Liverpool another year of his service - especially now Javier Mascherano appears to be on his way out.

The World Cup winner is said to be unhappy at the lack of investment in the playing squad and some bookmakers have suspended betting on him joining Chelsea.

New Kop boss Roy Hodgson has been rocked by the news that Mascherano wants to leave but Aldridge, who scored 63 goals in 104 games for Liverpool, says the Spain striker has to stick around.

"With Mascherano going it's fair to say you can sustain that but with Fernando Torres as well... well it's already a massive job for Roy Hodgson as it stands, but to lose the two of them would be devastating," he told Sky Sports News.

"Personally, I think Torres owes Liverpool 12 months. He came from Athletico Madrid, we have put him on a higher pedestal. Over the past couple of years with all those goals he has scored, he has been terrific; but I just think he owes us another 12 months to help get the club back on track.

"He is massive for the club. He is creative, his goalscoring ratio is phenomenal. He still has four years left on his contract so at the end of the day Roy Hodgson could demand he stays for another 12 months; but of course, players are very, very powerful these days."

Destructive

Mascherano is said to have told Hodgson he wants to leave Anfield, with former boss Rafa Benitez and Inter said to be leading the chase.

And while he believes Torres leaving would be a disaster, Aldridge believes it will not be too hard to replace the defensive midfielder, who has scored just two goals in 138 appearances - providing Hodgson is given the money to do so.

"I think if Mascherano does go, as long as the money is injected back to Roy then there's no problem," he said. "The more creative players are a must to have, destructive players like Mascherano you can replace fairly easily.

"You can fish that type of player out. But the problem Liverpool have with Javier is that he's got two years left on his contract at the moment and reports suggest that Rafa Benitez has been interested in him - ironically he said he wouldn't sell him for £50million this time last year so it will be interesting to see what money we're talking about - and if they keep him for another year he would be worth half the money he is now.

"I talk to a lot of Liverpool fans and they have resigned themselves to losing him over a week ago. He's not been saying the right things for the last 12 months and now he has thrown in the wildcard about his wife not being happy in the area.

"That's a sure sign, so I think everyone is resigned that Javier wants to go. But the fact is we need to be assured by Torres."

Click Here for Your Free Bet

Comments (21)

  • Page 1 of 2
  • 1
  • 2

John Earwaker (Liverpool fan) says...

Aldo is one of those ex-players that the fans really look up to and respect his viewpoint, and on this he''s most probably spot on the money. LFC supporters really do appreciate what we have in Torres and hate the thought of him going. I would like to think that he is playing hardball with Purslow and the Muppets, hoping that his standing will tip the balances in favour of the all important funds being made available to aid in building the squad. As to Monster Masch going, well come on it''s been on the cards since last summer and Rafa really had to work hard on him to give us one more season. The story about his wife and family being unsettled is I think pretty genuine. Sometimes the fans forget that there are issues beyond players egos and financial gain and these can have an affect on performances over a season. But to be fair to Masch, last year he never hid on the pitch. If he goes, which looks a given, then at least we hope that the fee will be appropriate and it will go into Roy''s purchasing funds and not off-setting the shortfall on profits that Carpetbaggers feel is rightly theirs. Aldo says he thinks El Nino owes us one, well I think G&H owes us a lot more, and the best they can do is to find us a decent new owner, forget the huge pay-off they think they are deserved and get the hell ota town, before we run them out BUTT NAKED FACING BACKWARDS ON A DONKEY, and think themselves lucky.

Posted 15:05 27th July 2010

Aled Kelly (Liverpool fan) says...

I agree to some extent with Aldo, but people have to stop banging on about a few momets of geniuses from Torres and realise that he is actually a VERY lazy player and refuses to run for the most simplest of balls. He gives up too easily and us regulars at Anfield, and away matches get very frustrated with him. He is very replaceable and it would not be a disaster in the slightest. I would prefer a player who scored 32 goals in 40 matches and contributed in other areas of play than one that scores 32 in 25 matches because he''s out injured the rest of the time! And as for his injuries, well if he had followed medical advice and not played in meaningless friendlies for Spain, leaving us without him for several weeks on several occassions then we might have been in the Champions League next year! He was more than ready to take the wages. So if he wants CL footie, lets cash in and he can watch it with his crocked leg from his new team''s directors box!

Posted 15:00 27th July 2010

Andy Seager says...

Why doesn''t everyone just shut up about Torres. Every time a quality player like him is away from their club, the press and the rumour mongers go into a spin frenzy. Just leave him alone. He is on holiday, he is probably not following every rumour or message board argument. He has not said he wants to leave, he has plenty of time left on his contract. The press keep saying that he need to be ''PERSUADED'' to stay- utter rubbish! Aldo''s comments are no-doubt as a result of the incredible volume of rumours across the Internet and people believe everything they read. Aldo is reacting to that, I am sorry that he feels that he needs to. These rumours do nothing but unsettle the club and those around it. it is spun by some sections of the lazy press who revel in unsettling LFC and who have nothing better to talk about and it sells. TalkSport yesterday was a good example of this by saying that "he is off to chelsea as we speak" with nothing to back up their pronouncements, but in doing so, caused a huge amount of argument over the internet and they got people phoning into their show! Other clubs add fuel to the fire by thinking that there is no smoke without fire and therefore either make bids for the player or exacerbate the rumours to deflect from their own transfer intentions. Why dont we all just stop attacking Torres for not talking to the press, or pretending we know what he thinks, we dont ! To me this is another situation like Gerrard. Loomk at what the press were saying there - and it was proven to be a load of cobblers ! Torres is on holiday, let him be, lets just wait and see what happens when he returns to training. Then we will know what he is thinking and what he will do.

Posted 14:44 27th July 2010

Delarno Alfalfa (Liverpool fan) says...

I think that masch should go because he is very over rated, and torres owes liverpool at least another season because of all of the money that liverpool invested in him. I think that I''m the biggest el nino fan ever but after is first season with liverpool he''s always injuried so I don''t think that we got our moneys worth as yet.

Posted 14:38 27th July 2010

Amy Harris (Liverpool fan) says...

I have always been one of Nando''s biggest fans, but at the moment i am losing patience with him. He owes us big time, he was injured most of last seaon, so i think we deserve at least another 12 months from him. If by the end of next season we havent progressed significantly then we will wave him off and have fond memories of him, If he goes to Chelsea now it will leave a very bad taste in the mouth. And if he does, that whole wearing of a Liverpool scarf in the world cup will be a big joke, as the great shankly once said "that scarf is someone''s life". I thought better of him

Posted 14:02 27th July 2010

Jörgen Gustafsson (Liverpool fan) says...

I cant understand why we have contracts for players this days, first a players signs a long contract the longer the better because it gives the player higher salary. Then the team have a bad season a player like Torres says, "I want to go, you are not good enough for me" or it can be like in Mascheranos case "my wife dont speak english" where the h.l. is the honour boys. Torres says he wants to be a Liverpool legend, bigger then KING KENNY, but that was in the season that we came second and everything was good. After the next season he says "I dont know if i will comeback" I want the 70:s back when the players played because they loved the team they played for. Stevie has been great, he have tought about leaving but have in the end always chosed to stay because he loves the team. .

Posted 13:53 27th July 2010

Derek Macdonald (Liverpool fan) says...

I think Hodgson should just tell Fernando hes stayin put, we need him and hes got a 4 year contract to honour and thats that! Torres is not like an anelka for example, I believe hes the type that wants a strong manager to take this decision out of his hands and show exactly how much he wants him. Mascherano is a fantastic player but he needs to remember where he was before liverpool took a gamble on him. We paid 17mil for him and hes now the argentina captain so i reckon hes 30 mil easy!

Posted 13:51 27th July 2010

Andy Lewis (Liverpool fan) says...

Any LFC will agree with me I''m sure that Torres has been a fantastic signing for the club. The Kop love him, he has broken every goalscoring record at the club, and if he had remained fit during his time at the club who knows what might have been. There is a huge BUT to this comment, and here it comes........ BUT, if a club came in for him for £50million plus, I think RH should bite their hands off, and here''s why. Torres is a class act, but if he only plays a little over half a season you have to accommodate for this and have a secondary striker who can just step up to the plate. We dont have that at present, but IF he were to go that £50million would go along way to recruit two very good striking options, with better injury records. Also, he has had perfect opportunities to put to bed any rumours about him going if he really wanted to stay. He really is a great talent, and I''m sure most would rather he stayed, but if he does go it wouldn''t be the end of the world for the club, provided we get the going rate.

Posted 13:45 27th July 2010

Conor Miles (Manchester United fan) says...

At the end of the day once a player wants to leave a club it''s best to let them go as performance levels tend to drop considerably if they don''t get their way. In Torres case, it might be a good time for Liverpool to cash in. He''s had a poor World cup and injury strewn season. Who''s to say he can return to his previous performance levels.....

Posted 13:41 27th July 2010

Peter Richey (Liverpool fan) says...

Take the £30m for Mascherano. He is good but not irreplaceable. End of. I agree with the others regarding Torres. If he wants to leave, let him..but not to another English team. Remember ManU going through legal channels to block Heinze''s move to Liverpool. Hodgson says Torres is annoyed at what has happened in the past EG lack of signings. Well Cole and Javo (attacking players) have been signed on frees so there is still money available for more signings. The guy who lost the plot and left us with only 1 injured 1st team striker has been sacked. We are now getting rid of players who are not good enough and replacing them with better players. Some younger players that didnt get a sniff under Benitez have had a chance to shine during pre-season and will get more of a chance under Hodgson. What more needs to said?...actions speak louder than words. If Torres is angling a move to play Champs League then good luck at Real Mourinho and thanks for the £50m.

Posted 13:33 27th July 2010

John Smith (Liverpool fan) says...

I will drive Masch to Inter myself!! He moans, gives the ball away and gets sent off!! Bring in Scott Parker to do his job or even give it to Jay Spearing, local lad who deserves a chance!!

Posted 13:24 27th July 2010

Ryan James (Liverpool fan) says...

Torres owes us at least a season, he wasn''t bothered about the champions leauge when he was at Athletico, we''ve given him the opportunity to play CL football. He might have been injured for a large part of last season but Torres was part of a squa that under achieved, instead of jumping ship at the first sign of trouble, he needs to get fit, roll his sleeves up, stop complaining and get Liverpool back into the CL. There''s only a handful of clubs that can afford him, Man City - not in the CL. Real Madrid arch rivals of Athletico, Barca, have already signed Villa which leaves Chelsea. If he wants to go then fine, but with the ridiculous fees going around and the fact we would be selling to a huge rival, I would accept anything less than 80 milion, if Chelsea don''t like the price then Torres stays - simple.

Posted 11:41 27th July 2010

Amanda Stephenson says...

I think that if Fernando Torres wants to leave liverpool than let him go. He is not bigger than Liverpool Football Club.

Posted 11:22 27th July 2010

Charie Devlin (Liverpool fan) says...

let them both go, if they dont want to be at Liverpool, they dont deserve to play for us, playing for any football club should be an honour!

Posted 10:58 27th July 2010

Onion Arsenal says...

I agree with John Aldridge. Although I am an Arsenal supporter, I think Torres owes it to Liverpool to stay for another season. in addition to what''s been said, Liverpool payed his inflated salary whilst he sat out half of the season with injury. There appears to be no sense of loyalty from players these days.

Posted 10:57 27th July 2010

Michael Mcl (Celtic fan) says...

I agree with Aldo, Torres does owe Liverpool at least another year and if Liverpool are in the same position next year and he still feels the same, well then he can leave knowing he gave it a shot and paid back in some way the Liverpool supporters for the backing he has received since his arrival. As for masch, don''t let the door hit your ass on the way out

Posted 10:14 27th July 2010

Stu Kingston (Blackburn Rovers fan) says...

Aldridge is wrong. Torres earned his corn by being one of the 2 players Liverpool could look to for some quality and heart. No wonder the pair of them were quiet at the world cup - they''re probably knackered from dragging the Reds into the UEFA cup. Torres don''t owe Liverpool anything. If this was any kind of a world all the fans and ex-players should be thanking him and Gerrard for giving them some sort of silverware to shoot for, because, Lord knows, if Roy Hodgson can''t perk them up, then the whole club needs stripping back and starting again, because something is wrong. Don''t persecute your heroes, because that is when they wonder why they put themselves on the line for you...

Posted 09:53 27th July 2010

Andy Turner (Liverpool fan) says...

Football these days is in a sad state,whatever happened to players wanting to play for the club, not what the club will pay them for there services, player contracts, also, are not worth the paper they are written on, not when a play just decides he doesn''t want to play for a certain club. Let Torres go, but he has to go to Europe, not be sold in England, it''s obvious from there body language last season that he and Mascherano don''t want to be there, they will only do more harm to the club than good, sell Mascherano off anywhere, he''s not that good anyway, but for the love of LFC do not sell Torres in England, let him go glory hunting elsewhere if that''s the way he sees his future, of course i''d rather see him in the light scarlet of Anfield but if thats not to be, so be it. YNWA.

Posted 09:50 27th July 2010

Barry Stacey (Arsenal fan) says...

I find John Aldridges'' comments surreal. Benitez played Torres whilst injured probably exacerbating his injury. If Liverpool flogged a half dead horse then it is their problem. It is Liverpool that owe Torres for his willingness to play in those circumstances when it is clear that he should have had an operation.

Posted 09:41 27th July 2010

Jason Wexley (Liverpool fan) says...

Just get masch out the door as soon as possible. 25 mill plus Cambiasso would be fine. Personally I''d like us to sign Stephen Defour from Standard who is class ask Sir Alex. If Torres went then how about Forlan & Aguero ??? a ready made partnership.

Posted 09:40 27th July 2010
  • Page 1 of 2
  • 1
  • 2

Add Comment*

Send us your views

Are you a Sky Sports subscriber?

*All fields required, your email address will be kept private