Fernando Torres has handed in a written transfer request to Liverpool FC after the defending Champions Chelsea tabled a bid in the region of 35 million pounds, on Friday. In a dramatic turn of events, after Liverpool signed the Ajax hit-man Luis Suarez for around 23 million pounds, Torres submitted the request for the transfer to Chelsea, in the late hours of the day. Liverpool had previously rejected Chelsea’s bid, stating that the player is not for sale.
It’s expected that, Chelsea would return with an improved offer in the region of 40 million pounds; what remains to be seen here is whether FSG cashes in on the player or tries to persuade the Spanish sensation to stay with Liverpool. It was pretty clear that the Spanish contingent at Liverpool was not happy with the way things were handled by FSG post their takeover of the club, specially the manner in which the Liverpool board stuck with Roy Hodgson even after the manager developed a sense of a strong discontent among the fans and the players. It was only after Liverpool dropped to 13th in the League table, 3 points above the drop zone, did FSG chose to replace the manager with club Legend Kenny Dalglish.
Prior to that, in the last summer, Torres was persuaded by the then Liverpool board that the club is on the brink of reaching a sale agreement and subsequently top reinforcements would be brought into the club. Unfortunately, Liverpool could not reach an agreement and made a profit in the 4th successive transfer window, not living up to its commitment to Fernando Torres.
Torres has been doing well under Dalglish, scoring twice against Wolves and hitting the post on two occasions against Fulham and Everton. But its widely speculated now, that the recent resurgence in his form has more to do with charming his suitors rather than helping Liverpool in its cause!
However, with around 72 hours for the window to close, Liverpool have a difficult decision to make. They have an unhappy player, which is apparently the result of their own doing, whose suitors could be ready to pay as much as 50 million pounds for acquiring his services. They do not have the time for making any reinforcements, Luis Suarez although a very promising player will not be able to fill into the shoes of Fernando Torres at this time. A summer move might make sense for Liverpool, but Chelsea would want him now.
Fernando Torres might not wear the Red shirt again, watching him play was an honor and a delight. However, as Liverpool fan I wish he remains to be Liverpool’s number 9.
UPDATE
There has been no visible activity on the deal in the past 24 hours. From Liverpool’s point of view, the club had rejected Chelsea’s bid as well as Fernando’s transfer request. From Chelsea’s perspective, they could be waiting for Nando’s agent for a green light so that they can get back to Liverpool with an increased offer.
Fernando Torres has a get out clause in his contract worth 50 million pounds, that gets activated in the summer if Liverpool do not qualify for the Champions League. In that case Liverpool may not be ready to part with their player for any thing less than 50 million pounds at this moment. It can also be possible that the request for a transfer might have been made to force Liverpool to lower the amount in the get out clause, for a smoother transition in the summer. Chelsea might also see this as the right time to get a hold on the player as there is no other bidder in the market or they might as well try to get some kind of an arrangement to seal the deal in summer.
The lack of activity in the media considering the fact that Liverpool had disclosed Chelsea’s bid and the fact that the club has rejected the request form the player, could also mean that either both the clubs are not on the negotiating table or that Chelsea have agreed to Liverpool’s valuation of Fernando Torres. Reports suggesting that Liverpool might want to make Anelka as part of the deal might not be correct because Anelka at 31 is not the player that fits into FSG’s long term vision. And it is also difficult to understand why Chelsea would shell out a sum in the region of 50 million pounds at this stage!
Fernando might be a Chelsea player by Monday night, but Liverpool would make sure that it happens on their own terms!