Did Dalglish fuck Torres off?

[Captain]

Quite the contrary, I'd say Torres' decision was well considered.

[Tony Moanero]

He moved because he wanted to play for a team capable of

challenging for the league and winning the Champions League. He has the medals he wanted and loads more money, too. Fuck him. All in the past.

[gkmacca]

It's not how I'd describe him. But for Torres that's what he was, someone who had not managed professionally in a long time. 

 

 

Torres knew damn well who Kenny was.

 

 

From The Times

December 10, 2007

Liverpool legends past and future with striking similarities

Kenny Dalglish and Fernando Torres come from different eras and from

different countries but, as their meeting shows, they have more in common

than they realise

No comparisons. The Kid makes it very clear. He does not want to be compared

to the King. "As of right now, I haven't done anything," Fernando Torres

says. "To tell the truth, I'm almost embarrassed to be here. Please, no

comparisons."

 

And what about "King Kenny"? How does it feel when, for half your life,

people have called you a legend and treated you as a footballing deity? And

what do you do when you come face to face with your supposed heir apparent?

"You're only a legend in someone else's mind," Kenny Dalglish says. "As long

as you're not a legend in your own mind, there's no problem. As for

Fernando, people like to put you in pigeonholes, to categorise you, to

compare you. But the most important thing is to be yourself."

 

That is easier said than done because you cannot help but draw comparisons.

To appreciate something you need a context, a frame of reference. And as you

sit and share a table with these two talented men, you cannot help but

notice the common ground.

 

It is not only that both are strikers, both have the star sign Pisces, both

were Liverpool's record signings, both have the ability to turn the Kop into

a frenzied hive of humanity. Or even that, less than 24 hours earlier,

against Bolton Wanderers, Torres had delivered a finish that was uncannily

similar to Dalglish's famous match-winner against FC Bruges in the 1978

European Cup final: the same timed run, the same right-foot caress, the same

gentle bounce just before crossing the goalline, the same helpless

goalkeeper.

 

There is an obvious red thread connecting these two men - and that is what a

club is about. Players come and go, but the shirt and the continuity remain.

Torres plays with Jamie Carragher, who played with Robbie Fowler, who played

with John Barnes, who played with Ian Rush, who played with Dalglish. And

Dalglish played with Emlyn Hughes, who played with Ian St John, who played

with Roger Hunt, who played with Ronnie Moran, who played with . . . Well,

you can keep it going all the way back to Malcolm McVean, the man who scored

the first goal in Liverpool's history in 1892.

 

In that sense, Torres and Dalglish are torchbearers for the same

115-year-old tradition. They may bristle at comparisons - whether through

modesty or good manners - but they understand the responsibility. "We are

the ones who carry out the dream," Dalglish says. "The dream that the

supporters will never achieve because they can't play. So they live through

us.

 

"But we have dreams we can't realise too," he adds, after a quick glance at

Torres's wide eyes. "I always wanted to stand on the Kop. But I could never

go there. I could only go there when it was empty. It's funny, my son got to

stand on the Kop. I left him with someone who took him in, looked after him

and he got to stand there during a game. He got to achieve a dream that I

never could."

 

The words wash over you. You think about how a man such as Dalglish could

miss something as mundane as a Saturday afternoon in the stands supporting

his team. And then Torres pipes up, almost wistfully: "I've stood on the

Kop. But also only when it was empty. And I would love it if, by the time I

retire, I, too, will also be unable to go stand on the Kop."

 

His grin is sheepish, but with a touch of mischief. The "no comparison"

rule? It has gone. But then he knows all too well why he was asked to come

here today.

 

Both men share the fact that they were supporters who got to live the dream.

Torres's was perhaps more complete. He got to play for Atlético Madrid, the

club he supported as a boy, but Dalglish never played for his childhood

idols, Rangers. In fact, as the story goes, on the day Jock Stein's

assistant came to his door to take him to Celtic, Dalglish frantically

ripped all his Rangers posters off his bedroom wall.

 

When football becomes your profession, club loyalty goes out of the window.

"When you play, it's hard to be a supporter," Dalglish says. "The exception

is your country. That's why I really enjoy Scotland games, because I can be

the same as everybody else. I can be a fan."

 

Your eyes flick to Torres's face and you try to guess what he is thinking.

The national team. Everyone pulling for their country. And how things in his

country are different.

 

"In Spain, the clubs are far more important," he says. "When I was at

Atlético, whenever I'd go to the Bernabéu [the home of Real Madrid] with the

national team, the fans would boo me because I was from Atlético. It's a big

problem. We're all wearing the same shirt, but when you trained with the

national team you would see the Real Madrid guys together, the Valencia guys

together, the Barcelona guys together. And they'd go in hard in training, as

if they were still wearing their club shirt."

 

Torres's voice trails away. Then Dalglish chimes in: "You know, there has

never been a successful team that's not had a good dressing-room. I mean,

they don't have to go drinking together, but the dressing-room is very

important."

 

"Vestuário!" Dalglish repeats the word in Spanish, for emphasis.

"We had a great dressing-room here [at Liverpool], we were real close. Even

now there's six of us who remain close. We play golf, we go out with the

wives, we're still very close. It's special. That's not a modern thing, is

it? In 20 years' time there won't be six of you sticking around Liverpool,

will there?" The words hang in the air. It is not an accusation. It is a

statement of fact. Football has changed. Eight of Liverpool's starting XI

hail from outside Britain. Some things can exist only at a certain point in

time. The world moves on.

 

Back to football. What happens when a superstar is having a stinker? What

happens when nothing goes right? Perhaps you expect them to trot out some

cliché, like "going back to basics", or that they will defer to more inform

teammates. But no, they respond with the same disdain. It is the indignation

of those who are used to carrying the weight of responsibility. "I always

want the ball, no matter how badly I'm playing," Torres says. "Even if I've

missed ten chances in a row I will want the ball. That's what I'm there for.

I'm not going to hide."

 

Dalglish says: "Of course you keep looking and wanting the ball. You have to

continue. Look, in the position Fernando plays, he'll miss more than he

scores. But it's not the goals that are important, it's the ones you miss.

The more you miss, the closer you are to the next one. You have to think

that way. And if you don't have the courage to have that mentality, you're

not going to be playing at this level."

 

You search for more common ground. And you find it. "I'll watch Atlético

because it's my team," Torres says. "But apart from that, I don't like

watching a lot of football. Although I do watch a lot, I don't watch for

enjoyment. I do it because I need to know the players and the opposing

teams, I need to study and prepare for them."

 

Dalglish's face lights up. "I was much like Fernando," he says. "I used to

watch to see who I was playing against, to see the habits of the

goalkeepers, the characteristics of defenders, see if I could learn

something.

 

Later, I would watch if there was a player I wanted to sign, things like

that. But now, well, it doesn't grab me the way it did when I was a boy. I'm

not really concentrating when I watch football."

 

Having studied the game for 50-odd years - as a fan, player and manager -

Dalglish is content to sit back and let the game be just that: a game. And

maybe that is why he seems to be enjoying his time with Torres. The Spaniard

's disarming humility and confidence has brought him some joy. And, maybe

seven years after leaving the sport for good, it feels good to reconnect,

even for just a few hours.

 

As for Torres, there is more than a little of the student facing up to the

master in his demeanour. He may have been embarrassed before arriving, but

he is glowing at the connection that has been made.

 

"I learnt many things today," Torres says when it is time to go. "I like the

way Kenny is so accessible, he's a normal person. He says he doesn't feel

like a legend, but the fact is that he is and that's why his 'normality' is

so shocking to me. You guys brought me here even though I told you that I'm

not anywhere near his level. But I'm very proud that I've been able to spend

time with him. And I'm honoured that he took the time to talk to me. Seeing

someone like him makes me even more hungry to continue to work hard and,

perhaps, some day, reach his level."

 

Their eyes lock. Dalglish knows that it is his turn to impart some wisdom.

"Today, footballers are criticised for the money they earn and for their

lifestyles," he says. "But Fernando seems to appreciate everything he gets.

"Fernando, this is a special club with special fans." Dalglish is now

talking directly to the young man. They may as well be alone in the room.

"They love people who love to wear their shirt. But they're not daft, they

know when it's real and when it's just for show, kissing the badge and all

that. They love to identify with people on the pitch. And I think they will

identify with you very, very easily."

--

[Trumo]

Quite the contrary, I'd say Torres' decision was well considered.

 

My point was that a lot of people at the club were of the mindset of looking after number one at that time, and Kenny had the task of trying to get everybody pulling in the same direction. A direct consequence of what the previous owners had turned the club into.

[Big Cheese]

Kenny did liverpool a great service getting 50mil for torres.

 

Carra has come out and said torres heart wasn't in it. He lost a yard of pace after injury, kenny knew that.

 

The stoke city goalie has scored more prem league goals than the chelsea record money buy striker this season

 

Dalglish had nothing to do with getting 50m. It was in his contract that he could go if somebody offered 50m. The credit should go to the man who put the 50m in his contract.

[Jonjo Baldy]

Look how ugly he became after leaving Liverpool, before every man in Liverpool wanted to bum him, Kenny was the last guy to do so and duly threw him out like a piece of old tranny trash.

[Coro]

Dalglish had nothing to do with getting 50m. It was in his contract that he could go if somebody offered 50m. The credit should go to the man who put the 50m in his contract.

 

I see you're still worshiping at the altar of Purslow.

 

Good grief.

[Section_31]

A walking talking logic bomb.

[Big Cheese]

I see you're still worshiping at the altar of Purslow.

 

Good grief.

 

He had a £50m clause in his contract. It was met and paid up front. The man who put it in deserves the credit. Unless you think £50m was to cheap.

 

Keep up boy!!

[Coro]

He had a £50m clause in his contract. It was met and paid up front. The man who put it in deserves the credit. Unless you think £50m was to cheap.

 

Keep up boy!!

 

Most of the credit should go to the man who signed Torres.

[Big Cheese]

Most of the credit should go to the man who signed Torres.

 

same as the shite he deserves on the crap he bought. Take it elsewhere boy.

[Coro]

Better than Purslow's signings.

 

Fact.

[xerxes]

I think that Torres was disillusioned with the way things were going here, and who could blame him? All the anecdotal reports are that Rafa's final year was miserable for the players, as G&H's reign imploded

 

Cashing in at the time to the tune of £50m was the right hing to do, how we spent it was an embarrassment to all involved.

 

Clubs, and players, go through cycles, and we are now at an exciting new one.Our old world class players are no more, but Suarez,Sturridge, Couts and Mignolet are emerging as new heroes.

 

If Torres had stayed, our subsequent Euro (non)performance and lacklustre league form would not have perssuaded hm that he should have remained.Both of us have, and needed to, move on.

[xerxes]

He had a £50m clause in his contract. It was met and paid up front. The man who put it in deserves the credit.

"That man" was Torres.......

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jan/28/liverpool-chelsea-fernando-torres

[Dr. J]

 

Cashing in at the time to the tune of £50m was the right hing to do, how we spent it was an embarrassment to all involved.

 

Sums it up well. That was our last shot at a bit of financial doping, until if/when we sell Suarez, and we spent the money stupidly.

[Trumo]

More likely his agent. Who then touted the contractual clause to would-be suitors.

[The Guest]

Whoever put the 50m release clause in shouldn't take any credit either. The only thing they should take credit for is that 50m release clause excluded United.

 

At the end of the day all 50m is doing is restricting how much you can hold out for not the other way around. Chelsea were willing to pay 50m for him, that's a fact. They would have paid that regardless of a release clause what we don't know is how much further they would have gone because the release clause was there.

[xerxes]

Whoever put the 50m release clause in shouldn't take any credit either. The only thing they should take credit for is that 50m release clause excluded United.

The clause was inserted at Torres' request. (See earlier link) No mention was made of a Man U exclusion.

[lifetime fan]

Get the fuck in!

[The Guest]

The clause was inserted at Torres' request. (See earlier link) No mention was made of a Man U exclusion.

What is the point in this post? Of course Torres requested it. Why else would it be in there? The club isnt going to restrict itself like that if it doesn't have to. Big cheese was saying whoever agreed to put it in there should take credit for getting the 50m for him which is daft.

 

I know the Man U thing isn't mentioned anywhere.

[xerxes]

What is the point in this post? Of course Torres requested it. Why else would it be in there? The club isnt going to restrict itself like that if it doesn't have to. Big cheese was saying whoever agreed to put it in there should take credit for getting the 50m for him which is daft.I know the Man U thing isn't mentioned anywhere.

My point was simply that someone taking credit for agreeing to a clause which facilitates a player's exit is a little bizarre.We were in a corner, you make my point well.We agree that Big Cheese's proposition was daft.

 

The mere fact that Torres wanted a release clause shows that he was semi-detached when he signed his new contract.

[Pureblood]

Semi-detached, eh?  I had him more down as an end of terrace ground floor flat.  

[xerxes]

Semi-detached, eh?  I had him more down as an end of terrace ground floor flat.

And dilapidated.

[Section_31]

I think that Torres was disillusioned with the way things were going here, and who could blame him? All the anecdotal reports are that Rafa's final year was miserable for the players, as G&H's reign imploded

 

I think it went well beyond that, I think it was psychological. He wasn't right in the World Cup and hasn't been right since. I think he thought that changing club would make a difference but it never, the body language, the face, everything about him has been wrong since the start of his final season with us, it's like someone stole his soul.

[Faustus]

I think it's completely mental how some reds would still take him back.

 

He's the very definition of a busted flush.