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Fernando Torres


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How was he better than Eto'o let alone Villa during that time frame.

Look, I know everyone loves a good bit of Torres bashing, but to not accept that he was that damn good in the 07-10 period of time is hilarious.

If you'd actually watched him play during that time then you would never be saying this so all I can quote at you is stats and advise you to go and watch some PL games from that time period and see just how influential he was. (Also note that he did all this playing for a Liverpool team who, while they were the best they have been since the 80s, were still not that good compared to Eto'o who played for a Barcelona team that scored for fun). They were all very good in that time period, obviously, but Torres and Villa were better than Eto'o and a debate could be made for which was the better as they were both incredible but personally i'd plump for Torres being better as he did it in a higher quality league.

Torres:

In the 07-08 season he scored 33 goals in all competitions (at just about a goal every 90 minutes he played).

In the Summer of 08 he led Spain to the Euro 2008 title while scoring the winning (and only) goal in the final.

In the 08-09 season he was unfortunately injured a fair bit but still scored 17 goals in all competitions.

In the 09-10 season he scored 22 goals in all competitions.

Total of 72 goals in 114 games over those 3 seasons. [That's a goal every 1.58 games].

Eto'o:

Scored 18 goals in 28 games in the 07-08 season.

Scored 36 goals in 52 games in the 08-09 season.

Scored 16 goals in 48 games in the 09-10 season.

Total of 70 goals in 128 games over those 3 seasons (for a far better team in a much easier league). [That's a goal every 1.83 games].

Villa:

Scored 22 goals in 40 games in the 07-08 season.

Scored 31 goals in 43 games in the 08-09 season.

Scored 28 goals in 45 games in the 09-10 season.

Total of 81 goals in 128 games over those 3 seasons. [That's a goal every 1.58 games].

So as you can see stats-wise Torres scored as many goals per game as Villa and they were both markedly better than Eto'o (who was playing for a ridiculously good team).

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Remember Torres didn't even take penalties in that time period. He was absolutely better than Torres & Villa.

https://youtu.be/DU0NlQEIOxg

Just ridiculous

LOOOL Villa was always top dog for Spain. Torres was bang average at Euro 2008, he scored in the final but Villa was always better then him, no doubt about that at all,

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Look, I know everyone loves a good bit of Torres bashing, but to not accept that he was that damn good in the 07-10 period of time is hilarious.

If you'd actually watched him play during that time then you would never be saying this so all I can quote at you is stats and advise you to go and watch some PL games from that time period and see just how influential he was. (Also note that he did all this playing for a Liverpool team who, while they were the best they have been since the 80s, were still not that good compared to Eto'o who played for a Barcelona team that scored for fun). They were all very good in that time period, obviously, but Torres and Villa were better than Eto'o and a debate could be made for which was the better as they were both incredible but personally i'd plump for Torres being better as he did it in a higher quality league.

Torres:

In the 07-08 season he scored 33 goals in all competitions (at just about a goal every 90 minutes he played).

In the Summer of 08 he led Spain to the Euro 2008 title while scoring the winning (and only) goal in the final.

In the 08-09 season he was unfortunately injured a fair bit but still scored 17 goals in all competitions.

In the 09-10 season he scored 22 goals in all competitions.

Total of 72 goals in 114 games over those 3 seasons. [That's a goal every 1.58 games].

Eto'o:

Scored 18 goals in 28 games in the 07-08 season.

Scored 36 goals in 52 games in the 08-09 season.

Scored 16 goals in 48 games in the 09-10 season.

Total of 70 goals in 128 games over those 3 seasons (for a far better team in a much easier league). [That's a goal every 1.83 games].

Villa:

Scored 22 goals in 40 games in the 07-08 season.

Scored 31 goals in 43 games in the 08-09 season.

Scored 28 goals in 45 games in the 09-10 season.

Total of 81 goals in 128 games over those 3 seasons. [That's a goal every 1.58 games].

So as you can see stats-wise Torres scored as many goals per game as Villa and they were both markedly better than Eto'o (who was playing for a ridiculously good team).

Where did I say he wasn't good? Eto'o and Villa were way better off the ball than Torres, better link up play, as well as overall team contribution, (main reason why Villa was the main man for Spain before Torres.) Eto'o never had the luxury of a team being built around him unlike Toress with Messi and Dinho being the main components. Can't forget that Eto'o is clutch as fuck as well and scored against almost every top club in Europe.

Mind you, before you accuse those of not watching a particular player play in dispute of your own opinion, I've been watching Torres since he captained Atletico at 19.

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Torres wasn't that good in his prime, Danny Murphy basically summed it up, outstanding pace and power but very average technically which got laid truly to bare when he started struggling post 2010 world cup.

http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/2015875-fernando-torres-wasnt-massively-rated-by-liverpool-players-says-danny-murphy

If he was great technically he would have still made regular positive impacts despite being past it like Eto'o did.

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Torres 'leading' his side to glory during EURO 2008 is such a myth. He scored in the final, but that's it. I guess Gotze led Germany to World Cup glory. Spain's superb midfield won them that tournament, in combination with some brilliant defending. Xavi was incredible. Senna was absolutely excellent as well. And I remember Casillas enjoying quite the tournament. He was truly in his prime back then.

Eto'o was Barcelona's star striker, scoring goals left and right. Important goals, goals in big games. Scored in two seperate CL finals. A serial winner, a key player in winning those trophies. How do you compare him with the striker of Atletico and Liverpool, who won nothing? Despite what some might think, you don't play for a top team because of luck. There's a reason Eto'o played for winning teams and Torres for non-winning teams. It's a difference in quality. And I'm talking about key players here, not types like Wes Brown and John O'Shea with their impressive CVs as squad players. It's not like Torres turned down the likes of Barca, Milan, Man Utd etc. in favour of Atletico and Liverpool.

Torres played in support of Villa for Spain. He was the one making dummy runs, creating space for his team mates, scoring fairly regularly. Torres made a name for himself sooner than Villa in the national team, but Villa went hard as soon as he became a regular. Villa was Spain's star striker. Winning Golden Boots, their highest all-time goal-scorer. How was Torres better? In fact, not being able to replace Villa has really hurt Spain. Scoring goals comes a lot harder for them.

Villa scored goals for fun at Valencia, a team under the elite. Torres scored goals for fun at Liverpool, a team under the elite. Villa joined a top team when he went to Barca. His added presence helped Barca win the league + CL double, until his unfortunate major injury ruined the rest of his time at Barca. Torres joined the elite and failed spectacularly, lucky enough to win some trophies in the process. Villa even went on to join Atletico, playing a big role in winning the league and reaching the CL final (!), even though he was past his prime.

Not to mention Villa and Eto'o's superior technique and overall game, which only made them more valuable to their sides. Torres was one of the best strikers in the world in his prime, but he never stood out. And people need to stop the 'it's easier to score in La Liga than the PL' argument. Before the freaks of nature named Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo came along, Ronaldo's total of 34, a record set in the 90s, almost seemed impossible to beat. So many great players have played in Spain, no one managed to score 30+ for fun. Managing 25+ goals in La Liga is no easy feat. Players like Suarez, Van Persie, Drogba, Ronaldo have proven it's very possible to score a high amount of goals in the PL, not to mention past greats like Henry and others.

If you have some time, check Aguero's goal-scoring record in England. Despite dealing with niggling injuries in his time at City, he's close to averaging a goal per game.

/closethread
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Remember Torres didn't even take penalties in that time period. He was absolutely better than Torres & Villa.

https://youtu.be/DU0NlQEIOxg

Just ridiculous

What seems ridiculous in my opinion is to imagine it is possible to quantify a player's ability simply by counting goals. Thinking like that can lead to flushing £100m down the toilet if you're not careful. :)

I frequently said, while Torres was scoring those goals, that he was nevertheless a very ordinary player. We have since learned from Danny Murphy that Torres's Liverpool teammates thought so too. Recently Iker Casillas has also broken cover, which I expect more professionals will as the years pass and the autobiographies are published. Forget the goals, the truth about Torres was inescapable if you just watched him play. A bloke might be able to beat the odds for a while but Nando's luck was always going to run out.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I think people here exaggerate Torres's struggles. The guy was decent was just unlucky because of his price tag which really affected his confidence, we have had much worse flops like Shevchenko, Veron and Kezman. He was not a success but neither was he a failure imo

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