LIVERPOOL’S demolition of Hull City was just the kind of result they needed to show a sceptical public that they really do have the fire power to win the Premier League.

The 2009 incarnation of Hull are not the most demanding opponents, but scoring six times against any team is a significant achievement. In particul-ar, the game was another small step along the road to Anfield immortality for Fernando Torres.

Over the weekend both Ian Rush and John Aldridge commented on just how good a player they think Torres is and how big an Anfield legend he can become. For both of those guys, years of service to the cause were registered before they really won over the adulation of the fans, despite their phenomenal goal scoring records.

In Torres’ case it seems that the process is being speeded up and already his name and his deeds are being compared to the greats of the past.

He only has 46 goals compared with Rush’s mammoth haul of 346 goals, achieved in 660 games.

But the Spaniard has achieved his in just 64 games – at a very impressive 0.72 goals per game – while Rush scored at a healthy, but still markedly slower, rate of 0.52 goals per game.

It is just wonderful for Liverpool to have a player of such proven potency in their team, a real world class striker, a player who has done it on the international stage and who will, so long as he stays free of injury, grow in stature and score more and more goals.

If the Premier League title comes to Anfield over the next season or two, it will be the feet and feats of Fernando Torres which will have helped to pave the way.