Fernando Torres flies to Spain for second opinion on
groin problem
Liverpool's
concerns over the fitness of Fernando Torres
have deepened after the striker flew to visit a specialist in
Valencia for a second opinion on the hernia problem that has
plagued him throughout Liverpool's desperate run of one win in
eight games.
Earlier in the day he had visited a private clinic on Merseyside
for a scan on his groin, although that appointment was arranged
before his 87-minute appearance against Lyon in the Champions
League on Wednesday and has been a post-match routine
since he developed the problem on international duty last
month.
With Steven
Gerrard, who has missed Liverpool's last four matches
with a groin injury, also being assessed on a day-by-day basis, the
club have delayed a decision on whether to send the pair for
operations in the hope that their captain and leading striker can
help lift their season at home to Birmingham City on Monday. The
international break which follows that game – it is three weeks
before Liverpool play again in Europe – affords the club an
opportunity to soften the impact should either Torres or Gerrard
fail to improve.
"Fernando played with pain, and after the game he still had the
same problems that have troubled him for a few weeks," said Benítez
of his compatriot's display in Lyon, where Liverpool's failure to
win pushed them closer to elimination from the Champions League at
the group stage. "He wants to wait, rather than have an operation.
He wants to work with the physios to try to solve his problems, but
still he has pain. He told me he needed to keep stopping during the
game because of the pain. Whether there is the need for him or
Steven to have an operation is a decision we will probably not take
straight away. We must see how they can improve, and by how much.
Then we will decide about any possible operation."