Torres - do we risk putting too much pressure on him

[Dhav]

We know how good Torres; given time, space and the ball he'll find the net. He is also capable of building effective partnerships as he has with Gerrard and Villa.

What concerns me somewhat is the extent to which we, as Liverpool fans, are canonising him. We've heard the stories of how he felt burdened at Atletico by the combination of expectation, huge weight of fan pressure, the responsibility of being captain and carrying the team on his shoulders. He seemed to suggest this affected his on-field performances at Atletico.

I'm beginning to see a few parallels with his career at Liverpool. He is becoming as vital to us as he was to Atletico, and just as loved. The fans seem to sing no other songs apart from the Torres one, whether El Nino is involved in the game or not. At times you also struggle to see how the team would score if he comes up short as at present the team seems very much geared to creating chances for him.
I know there are other factors at play, namely that he seems to be in a more conducive environment, he is not captain here and plays with better players, the English game and Premier League games suits him more/the defending affords him time and space he needs to be deadly, and he has probably matured since he's moved to a foreign country and become a stronger character as a result.

But, with all the love we are showing him, with all the admiration being flung in his direction, do we risk putting so much pressure on him, that there's a chance of him buckling under the strain as he felt he did at Atletico?

[kop-al-74]

The difference i think is that he's not the only big fish at Liverpool.He has also said himself how he appreciates the privacy he gets here which he couldn't get in spain.

At the end of the day,he will be a superstar,the worlds greatest.He seems to have taken everything in his stride so far.He seems totally focused and unfazed by everthing.Not forgetting his humble attitude and respect he shows to everyone.

Also with Atletico,he probably believed that there was only a certain level he would beable to achieve whereas at Liverpool,everything is achievable,he can fulfill all of his dream and ambitions.

Already he has come on loads,shortlisted for euro player of the year,and a european champion with spain scoring the winner in the final.Not forgetting the outstanding season at club level,the last 12 months must seem like a dream to him.It has to be what every footballer wants,but only a very few achive it in such short space of time.

Your right with regards to pressure.There will be a hell of a lot more on him this coming season but he really does seem to have the mental strength to beable to take it in his stride and deal with it.

We are very lucky to have him.Thank you Rafa.

[Parm]

you also have to remember he came up through the Atletico ranks and was their only superstar player in a time when Real were buying galactico after galactico and winning title after title. You can imagine the pressure put on him to try and transform Ateltico. It'd be like being James Vaughan and having the weight of the blue****e on your shoulders to try and overhaul us.
I think he'll be ok with us, he was talking about being captain of LFC sometime in the future. He has arrived at a clb which is the perfect fit for him.

[Parm]

The difference i think is that he's not the only big fish at Liverpool.He has also said himself how he appreciates the privacy he gets here which he couldn't get in spain.

At the end of the day,he will be a superstar,the worlds greatest.He seems to have taken everything in his stride so far.He seems totally focused and unfazed by everthing.Not forgetting his humble attitude and respect he shows to everyone.

Also with Atletico,he probably believed that there was only a certain level he would beable to achieve whereas at Liverpool,everything is achievable,he can fulfill all of his dream and ambitions.

Already he has come on loads,shortlisted for euro player of the year,and a european champion with spain scoring the winner in the final.Not forgetting the outstanding season at club level,the last 12 months must seem like a dream to him.It has to be what every footballer wants,but only a very few achive it in such short space of time.

Your right with regards to pressure.There will be a hell of a lot more on him this coming season but he really does seem to have the mental strength to beable to take it in his stride and deal with it.

We are very lucky to have him.Thank you Rafa.

Amen to that brother.

[Catrin]

We expect a lot from him but he is at the right club. If his form drops then we are not likely to get on his back unless it looks like he isn't trying. We already know that he has the quality so as long as he gives his all, he will be ok. He can't really develop the same fear of failure that he could somewhere like Real or Barca.

[dww]

I think that a lot of players seem to find the environment in England freeing in terms of intrusion into their life compared to where they were at home. I think it is the feeling of never escaping the pressure that got to Torres.

In addition I think there are two factors that help him with us - 1/ Gerrard takes a lot of the heat off him and 2/ he seems to say in all interviews that he feels the supporters are always behind the team even when the team looses. I think these two factors make a considerable difference psychologically.

I do though think that as a team we need to rely less on him. The fact that Rafa was saying before the United games that the difference was now we have Torres seemed to be unnecessary pressure and the fact the rest of the team didn't give him enough support or chances just exacerbates that. I'm hoping though that the lack of attention might help the likes of Lucas and Babel progress and be able to blossom this year.00000

[Mike]

Yes there is pressure, but Nando would of expected that when joining us.

Dont think we have put too much pressure on the guy though.

[NICKZS]

I think Nando has had the greatest apprenticeship you can possibly ask for. The amount of pressure and responsibility he experienced at Atletico is much more intense than he has at Liverpool, and the level of maturity he has been obligated to gain at this age is all the better for us.

[Skillz]

The difference i think is that he's not the only big fish at Liverpool.He has also said himself how he appreciates the privacy he gets here which he couldn't get in spain.

At the end of the day,he will be a superstar,the worlds greatest.He seems to have taken everything in his stride so far.He seems totally focused and unfazed by everthing.Not forgetting his humble attitude and respect he shows to everyone.

Also with Atletico,he probably believed that there was only a certain level he would beable to achieve whereas at Liverpool,everything is achievable,he can fulfill all of his dream and ambitions.

Already he has come on loads,shortlisted for euro player of the year,and a european champion with spain scoring the winner in the final.Not forgetting the outstanding season at club level,the last 12 months must seem like a dream to him.It has to be what every footballer wants,but only a very few achive it in such short space of time.

Your right with regards to pressure.There will be a hell of a lot more on him this coming season but he really does seem to have the mental strength to beable to take it in his stride and deal with it.

We are very lucky to have him.Thank you Rafa.

He felt the pressure at AM without doubt because they made him captain far too early IMO. He is Captain material but not for a while, his comments re SG were very pertinent.

Stevie was put in charge a year or two early here and he struggled with it, wanted to leave etc. We are lucky he has matured (a hell of a lot, IMO) in the last year or two and we now have an excellent leader. Torres is showing his class now because he is freed of that weight on his shoulders and is purely focused on his performance, not the teams.

[badpiggy]

i can see what dhav means but the short answer is that we'll find out. the cut of his jib would suggest that, like someone else in the thread said, liverpool is a perfect fit for him. he's a huge player at a huge club but the only expectaion of him really is to be brilliant at football which the aforementioned cut of his jib suggests, is his expectation too.

[Dhav]

i can see what dhav means but the short answer is that we'll find out. the cut of his jib would suggest that, like someone else in the thread said, liverpool is a perfect fit for him. he's a huge player at a huge club but the only expectaion of him really is to be brilliant at football which the aforementioned cut of his jib suggests, is his expectation too.

Absolutely. Currently, he seems such a content, jovial, happy-go-lucky sort, and I'd hate to see that change. We've seen that he's up to the physical challenge of the Prem, I'm not sure he has been tested too much mentally yet though. It would be interesting to see how he reacts to a poor run of performances or a poor scoring run. I'm reasonably confident, in spite of how burdened he felt at Atletico, that he can stand up to the mental challenges also; I'd just hate for us as a club and supporters to put undue pressure on him to the extent that he feels as burdened as he did at Atletico.

[badpiggy]

also on the plus side, he's just been a match-winner in the european championship's final in a team where the pressure was on them to attack and score.

[Neil Young]

Absolutely. Currently, he seems such a content, jovial, happy-go-lucky sort, and I'd hate to see that change. We've seen that he's up to the physical challenge of the Prem, I'm not sure he has been tested too much mentally yet though. It would be interesting to see how he reacts to a poor run of performances or a poor scoring run. I'm reasonably confident, in spite of how burdened he felt at Atletico, that he can stand up to the mental challenges also; I'd just hate for us as a club and supporters to put undue pressure on him to the extent that he feels as burdened as he did at Atletico.

You make him sound like Falstaff.