Reds set for record Torres deal

Premier League / Editor / 24 June 2007 / Leave a Comment

Liverpool are set to see off interest from Manchester United to seal the signing of Fernando Torres for a club-record £25m this week.

Reds boss Rafa Benitez has made the Atletico Madrid striker his number one transfer target this summer and looks set to get his man, despite late interest in the 23-year-old from United.

It is thought the Spanish international would prefer a move to Anfield, where he would team up with fellow countrymen Benitez, Xabi Alonso and Pepe Reina, to spearhead the Reds' strike force next season.

The arrival of the Spain international would certainly boost the Premiership credentials of the Anfield outfit, who have not won the title since 1990. Currently they are available at 7.6 to end their barren run, with Manchester United and Chelsea joint favourites at 2.64.

There are reports Benitez will offer Luis Garcia or Djibril Cisse to Atletico as part of the deal in order to reduce the amount Liverpool will have to fork out, although it is thought the Reds are willing to pay as much as £25m for Torres - a figure that easily eclipses the £14m spent on Cisse in the summer of 2004.

The former Valencia boss is keen to bring in at least one new face quickly, although he did stress that any players drafted in from Spain would need more time to recover as the La Liga season only finished last week.

Benitez told the club's official website: "We have a number of targets, and I am receiving interesting phone calls all the time.

"We are monitoring situations all the time and there is no urgency yet. If we bring in players from Spain, they only finished playing a week ago so they will need a longer break, but I would like somebody in before we start pre-season training."

United's interest in Torres is long-standing and reports have suggested Sir Alex Ferguson now wants the forward after his bid to land Italian international Fabio Quagliarella from Sampdoria stumbled over the weekend.