LIVERPOOL, England — The Kid passed his test with flying colours.
Foreign strikers notoriously struggle to adapt quickly to the Premier League, but Liverpool striker Fernando Torres has scored 23 league goals in his first season in England.
The Spain international's most recent goal, against Manchester City on Sunday, took him level with former Man United forward Ruud van Nistelrooy's record debut haul for a foreign player in England.
Nicknamed "El Nino" — "The Kid" — at previous club Atletico Madrid, Torres was warned by Reds manager Rafa Benitez to expect a tougher second season now that rivals will have scrutinized his talent.
"Clearly, it will be more difficult, but he has a strong mentality so he can improve and he can cope with defenders," Benitez said. "Hopefully he can score as many goals again. It is not easy — it will be more difficult.
"But if he scores a good number of goals and the other players score more goals, it will be OK."
Torres, who has proved himself worthy of inheriting Ian Rush's No. 9 shirt, never managed to break the 20-goal barrier in any of his seven seasons with Atletico in the Spanish league.
But his instinctive second-half goal against Man City ensured victory in Liverpool's final home game of the season and set a club record for scoring in eight straight league games in the top flight at Anfield. Roger Hunt had the same streak in the 1961-2 season, but that was in the second tier of English soccer.
"I'm very proud," Torres said. "I knew about the record before the game and I am pleased to have scored again. Now, I will try to do even better next season.
"The first season is normally always difficult, but it has been made easy for me by my teammates. It's thanks to them that I can keep scoring and keep improving."
The 23-year-old Torres' personal achievements, including scoring six goals in his first Champions League campaign, is lessened by Liverpool not winning a trophy for a second straight season.
"We want to win trophies every season. Maybe next season," Torres said. "We will have to keep improving. For the fans, the most important is the league because this club has gone too many years without it."
Goalkeeper Pepe Reina has been staggered at the progress of Torres, who has been acclaimed by the Kop's loyal fans.
"You have to remember that this is Fernando's first season in England, so he will improve," Reina said. "English football is different, but he has adapted really well, better than anyone could have expected."
Equally pleased with their investment are Liverpool's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. Although Liverpool smashed its transfer record to sign Atletico's captain for 20.3 million pounds (C$40.6 million), he was bought through letters of credit with the club's creditors. Gillett also owns the Montreal Canadiens.
