Pace of Fernando Torres a vital weapon in title push, says Rafa Benitez

Nov 12 2007 by Chris Beesley, Liverpool Daily Post

RAFAEL BENITEZ has hailed Fernando Torres as the man who can help turn draws into wins as Liverpool go in search of the Premier League title.

Liverpool were heading for a fifth draw in six league games this season on Saturday until their £18million striker came off the bench to break a stubborn Fulham side’s resolve with a smart finish at Antti Niemi’s near post in front of the Kop.

Steven Gerrard added a second from the penalty spot three minutes later but it was the former Atletico Madrid man’s crucial opener that ensured Liverpool were on their way to their first three points at Anfield since the 6-0 crushing of Derby County nine weeks earlier.

Benitez said: “I think last year we were controlling a lot of games but we needed to score these goals.

“It is the difference between a draw and three points. When you bring in a player like Fernando it is with this idea.

“He can do it because he’s a player with pace. This ability when you have pace is an issue. I have ability but I don’t have pace so I can’t beat anyone! But Torres can do it.”

Benitez, who named an unchanged side from the team that started the 8-0 win over Besiktas, started with Andriy Voronin and Peter Crouch up front and insisted that while all of his strikers bring him varying attributes, the Spaniard’s speed sets him apart from his other forward options.

He said: “I don’t think that he is our most natural finisher. Dirk Kuyt and Andriy Voronin are very good finishers also but if you can go with the pace that Torres has you have an advantage.

“When you have four good strikers, you need to manage with the quality and the conditions of each one.

“In this case we were playing with Voronin who was doing a fantastic job and had some chances and Crouch, who is good in the air but we needed a little bit more pace.

“Torres has this pace at the end of the game when the other team are tired and he used his ability.”

Benitez added: “I’m sure that Voronin, Crouch and Kuyt, plus Babel also, can score these goals for us.

“Okay it was Torres that scored but Voronin had two chances before and in the end the key for me is when you can use one or the other one – it depends on the defenders and it depends on your team.

“We were expecting to score but I didn’t know who would score. We kept trying to keep passing, moving the ball and creating chances and changing players.

“We brought on Ryan Babel and Torres with fresh legs and tried to do different things.”

Benitez also reserved praise for another fellow Spaniard, goalkeeper Pepe Reina, who set up Torres’s goal with a long kick downfield.

He said: “Reina is a player who has game intelligence, he can read the game, he can play these kind of balls for the strikers if the strikers run for the ball.

“You need the movement because sometimes he is looking for this pass and you don’t have the space, the defenders are deep and you cannot play these balls but he likes to do.

“You can save, save, save 100 balls but if you don’t do something more you will be a good goalkeeper but not a top class keeper.”