Fernando Torres - Torres: El Niño: My Story

It happened in San Sebastin, in northern Spain, when I was playing for Atltico Madrid against Real Sociedad. I was battling with a defender, and the captains armband I was wearing came loose and fell open. As it hung from my arm, you could see the message written on the inside, in English.

Well never Walk Alone.

I t wasnt what I had intended but right there and then I became identified with Liverpool. I hadnt planned for it, and a future at Anfield hadnt even crossed my mind, but that moment of chance, that accident, came to symbolise the next big step in my career: my captaincy at Atltico gave way to the words that define Liverpool.

All of my best friends have the words tattooed on their arms. We were eating together once and they suggested that I do the same. I told them I couldnt. Youll Never Walk Alone is a phrase so intimately linked to one of Europes biggest clubs, so clearly associated with Liverpool, that I didnt think it was a good idea. I was an Atltico player and a rojiblanco through and through. They decided to give me a new captains armband for my birthday with the phrase on the inside so that, even if I wouldnt get it tattooed on my arm, the phrase would accompany me. My friends would accompany me; we would never walk alone. I gave the armband to the Atltico kit man, who kept it with the teams shirts. When it slipped down that day against Sociedad, an eagle eyed photographer snapped the picture and I was immediately linked to Liverpool.

Maybe that was the day I took my first step towards Anfield, or maybe it was because I already shared things with Liverpool. I identify with the values that define the club: hard work, struggle, humility, sacrifice, effort, tenacity, commitment, togetherness, unity, faith, the permanent desire to improve, to overcome all obstaclesOnce a week Liverpool fans feel like the most important people on earth and make the players feel like it too. They give everything and they ask for nothing in return. Liverpool FC is a club that despite being used to winning never succumbs to the temptation to start cruising. If you play well the fans enjoy it, and if you play badly they help you get over it. The Liverpool family have helped me off the pitch too. Its as if you live in a neighbourhood where everyone knows you and everyone joins forces for the same cause: the team. Good people, honourable people, who have always got back on their feet however many times destiny has knocked them down. The harder things have been, the more united they have become.

I never imagined I would play for Liverpool. The first rumours about my future started just after Id played in the Nike Cup in Italy at the age of fifteen. That was May 1999 and the newspaper Marca started to link me to Arsenal. The only thing I was worried about then was passing my exams and enjoying my summer holiday in Galicia. But the Premier League bug did bite. A couple of years later, just after I had made my debut for the Atltico first team, there was talk about Manchester United. Back then, Liverpool wasnt an option at all but other clubs were. A scout from Arsenal even contacted me and gave me his card in case I wanted to have a trial with the Gunners.

My interest in the Premier League grew. In Spain, most people only ever talked about La Liga. At the time there was little coverage of foreign leagues and few Spanish players were playing their club football outside the country. That was the time, in the late 1990s, when Arsenal built a great side with Dennis Bergkamp, Ian Wright, David Seaman, Tony Adams, Nicolas Anelka and a very young Thierry Henry, with Arsne Wenger as coach. They were wonderful to watch. So much so that I used to choose Arsenal when I played chapasthe Spanish equivalent of table football played with bottle tops. You would play against friends with metal bottle tops that you painted in the colours of your favourite team; Id painted mine Arsenal colours with the players names on. We would challenge each other to games at school and in the parks in Fuenlabrada, the town just outside Madrid where I lived. When Jos Antonio Reyes signed for them, I followed with interest: I kept a close eye on his progress, his team-mates, and his new club.

I had always been interested in foreign leagues as a kid. I followed the Italian league as much as possible because I loved the way that the Argentinians Gabriel Batistuta and Abel Balbo played. I also liked a kid that was coming through by the name of Francesco Totti. Before that I remember Arrigo Sacchis Milan, van Basten in particular, and later I followed Juventus with Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravanelli. Then there was George Weah at Milan, a phenomenal player. My favourite in Italy was always Batistuta. He had everything. But my idol at home was Kiko Narvezone of the heroes of the league and cup double that Atltico won in 1996.

In the summer of 2006 after the World Cup in Germany, Baha Internacional, the company that have looked after me since I was fifteen, told me that there had been discussions with Manchester United. Sir Alex Ferguson had been involved in the negotiations but in the end nothing happened: maybe neither of us really pushed hard enough.

I also found out that some other English clubs, like Newcastle and Tottenham, had made offers which Atltico rejectedjust as they did to offers from Olympique Lyon and Inter Milan. I also felt that it wasnt the time to leave and none of the offers entirely convinced me. My desire to succeed with Atltico stopped me thinking about a change.

When Liverpools offer arrived a year later, I took a long time thinking about it and in the end I decided it was time for a change. I felt that I was stagnating in Spain and that my development was grinding to a halt. The Premier League is the strongest in Europe. A few years ago, La Liga was the best but the huge influx of foreign players has allowed the English league to improve and the football is more attractive nowits faster and more intense, there are more goal scoring chances and the players respect the rules of the game better. In England, players dont dive. They try to help the referees, they dont try to take advantage of every situation and the game isnt constantly stopping. Theres a level of respect that lets you really enjoy the game. Of course there are tough tackles, but they are honest attempts to win the ball and players who do get fouled get up straight away, even if it hurts, instead of rolling round the turf to try to get the crowd going and put pressure on the referee. As a spectator, I really enjoy watching Premier League games. Even before I signed, my Spanish team-matespeople like Xabi Alonso and Pepe Reinatold me that I would enjoy playing in England even more than I had enjoyed playing in Spain.

I always thought that I would play at Anfield as a visitor, never as part of the home team. I would compare the old Highbury to Anfield; I would have loved to have played there. That respect for history and tradition is something that should be applauded. Reyes and Cesc Fabregas told me about the reverence shown during the final few games at Arsenals old ground. Its like Anfield, a cathedral to the game. You want to be able to tell your friends: Ive been there, where so many glorious pages of footballing history were written.

Destiny seemed to have decided that if I ever left Atltico Madrid it would be for Liverpool. Having turned down various proposals, Rafa Bentezs call made me reflect and start to have doubts for the first time. I decided that it was the right moment to leave and I asked Miguel-ngel Gil Marn, Atlticos owner, to listen to Liverpools offer.

I didnt know that Liverpool was the most successful club in England. Since Rafa went to Anfield and took Spanish players with him, I had got to know Liverpool better but I didnt realise that. I remember the 2001 Uefa Cup final against Alavs but I thought they were some way behind the teams that I assumed dominated English football: Manchester United and Arsenal. I was surprised when I found out just how incredible their history was and how many titles they had won.