Respectful Torres keeps feet on ground

Liverpool FC and Spain striker Fernando Torres has told the UEFA Training Ground that despite his reputation as one of Europe's biggest stars he is a quiet man within the Anfield dressing room.

Respect
Torres has taken the Premier League by storm since joining from Club Atlético de Madrid at the start of the 2007/08 season and played his part as the Merseyside beat Atlético's rivals, Real Madrid CF, 1-0 in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League. Yet in the dressing room before the game he allows others to take centre stage. "If you join a new team you should be the last to offer your opinion," he said. "It's respect and that's the respect you earn from them. Then they will come up to you and ask you for your opinion. Here at Liverpool, with all the famous players and money involved, and of course people asking a lot of me, I behave that way in the dressing room. I don't ask for things, I just stay calm and do my work."

Aragonés influence
Atlético was Torres' first and only professional club prior to his move to Anfield, the 24-year-old joining the youth setup at Los Colchoneros in 1995. During his time in the B team at the Vicente Calderón, Torres worked under Luis Aragonés − who he played under again as Spain won UEFA EURO 2008™ − a coach he feels was a key figure in his development. "I admired him [at Atlético]," Torres said. "He let me suffer, leaving me out and waiting on the bench, or substituting me, because he just asked a lot of me. I realised what I was missing when he was gone. Obviously it was hard, and you hated him more than you liked him, but that's what he wanted. It was his way of getting the best out of you."

Big names
You can see more of Torres' interview, where he speaks about the support of his parents, his relationship with his brother, his path to Atlético and how he deals with nerves before a big match, on the UEFA Training Ground by clicking here. With the latest edition to the UEFA Champions League Skills School − The Lampard Swivel − also on the site from today. What are you waiting for?