Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has revealed he was left "heartbroken'' by Fernando Torres' decision to quit the club for Chelsea, but believes the Reds are finally on an upward curve.
England midfielder Gerrard has led the Anfield club through a long period of drama both on and off the field, but he now believes under the ownership of John W Henry and Tom Werner, and the caretaker management of Kenny Dalglish, that good times are not too far away from returning. That did not stop him mourning the departure of Torres, though.
"I was heartbroken. Absolutely gutted. But I also called him after he left,'' Gerrard told the Daily Mail. "There are no hard feelings. I built up a relationship with Fernando and became his friend. He scored some fantastic goals and I have fantastic memories. I enjoyed playing with him. So you can't go from one extreme to another and fall out with him, start criticizing him. But he will also understand how I feel. Fernando is a bright person and he will understand that the Liverpool fans are upset as well.''
Liverpool continue life without Torres on Saturday when they meet Wigan, and the decision whether to play Gerrard, who is recovering from a groin injury that kept him out of England's friendly with Denmark in midweek, will be left until the last moment.
Torres' Chelsea debut was a 1-0 defeat to Liverpool, the latest in a string of impressive results they have put together since Dalglish returned to the club to replace Roy Hodgson last month. And added to the signings of Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll - the £60million replacements for Carroll - Gerrard can finally see happier times returning to his club.
He said: "The football club is much happier now. It's in a better place than it has been for a few years. We've got new owners, who I've spoken to quite a lot, who are passionate about what they want to do.
"I trust them, I trust them even more after what's happened in the last week or so. And the way they've acted, coming towards the end of the transfer window, has impressed me. I was a bit wary at first because I was maybe a bit guilty of trusting the previous owners too much.
"This time I've taken a bit more time in judging them. But they've been brilliant so far. They have put the club back in a good place already and the last three or four weeks have been really positive. We've had some good results. The lads are smiling again. I've actually enjoyed going to work again.''
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