Monday, March 10, 2008

Fernando Torres Revelling With Steven Gerrard As His Liverpool Partner

Fernando Torres believes his goalscoring run has been made easier by his partnership with Steven Gerrard.

The Spaniard netted his seventh goal in his last four games during Liverpool’s comfortable 3-0 home win over Newcastle United on Saturday.

Torres now has 25 in 34 games this season, with 19 coming in the Premier League.

Between them, Gerrard and Torres have scored 44 times this campaign, 10 of which have come during the last five games where the skipper has been employed in an advanced midfield role in support of his Spanish team-mate.

And Torres said: “When you play alongside a player like Stevie, it is easy to score like I have been. I am very comfortable with the partnership I have with Stevie and he is comfortable with me. We now must play like this for a long time together.

“We know where each other is running, where we are. I score, Stevie scores, and the team is winning. That is the most important thing.

“We both do our jobs and the team is winning. That is all we are trying to do.”

Torres, whose goal on the stroke of half-time was created by a fine Gerrard pass, returned the compliment in the second half after Jermaine Pennant had inadvertently given Liverpool the lead in the 43rd minute.

Rafael Benitez’s side have won their last five games, and Torres added: “Now we can look to the Inter Milan game with confidence, it is a very important game for us, and we must keep this form going.

“We are confident of progressing in the competition in the San Siro. We had an excellent victory against Inter at Anfield, and we know if we score one goal in Milan it makes it very difficult for them, already 2-0 behind.

“They are one of the best teams in Europe at the moment, but we are confident.

“We expect to play deep and try for the counter-attack, and although we know Inter are a good team the first goal is very important.

“If we score first it will be difficult for them to score four times.”

Newcastle United manager Kevin Keegan was hugely impressed by the combination between Torres and Gerrard.

“You are only seeing the start of it at the moment, but what you are seeing if you are Rafa Benitez or a Liverpool fan is something that makes you go ‘wow’,” he said.

“It’s not what it is now but what it could be in the future that must frighten teams.

“Liverpool have the players who can really hurt you and, in Gerrard and Torres, they certainly had that. They are building a good partnership, realising the strengths of each other, and they are exploiting that on the pitch.

“The partnership with Gerrard is a combination that can only get better.”

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