Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina blames Fernando Torres' poor form on team performance
Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has defended Fernando Torres’ performances over the last few weeks, claiming that those slating the Spaniard were being unfair as the striker's team-mates had not been carving
out enough chances for him.
Torres has netted just two goals in 11 games this season since Roy Hodgson took over as manager in the summer. His second goal came in the 2-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers at Anfield — only the club’s
second win in the English Premier League this term. As a result, the 26-year-old has come under fire from the media and a section of the Reds support.
However, Reina has defended his fellow 2010 FIFA World Cup winner, claiming that a striker cannot perform well if his team-mates are faliling to provide adequate scoring chances. He also compared Torres’
situation to the one faced by compatriot David Villa — a forward renowned for the number of goals he scores — at Barcelona.
'Strikers are all about goals they score'
Reina told British newspaper
The Guardian that: "All strikers are about the goals. They want to score them and they want to score the winners like Fernando did against Blackburn. I think he can build up now to what he was like of old. What has happened to him is more or less what
has happened to Villa in Barcelona.
"They are both great players but when strikers are not scoring people are always disappointed in them. It's not fair. I don't think we have been assisting him like we should, particularly in the last few
weeks. He has not been able to do anything at all.
"We know he is the type of player that can win a game just like that, but we can't expect him to keep doing it on his own. We have to feed him in. That's the point."
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