Liverpool striker
Fernando Torres is facing
pressure from Spain officials to undergo hernia surgery.
The Telegraph says Torres faces a choice of immense
significance for Liverpool. Club
or country? Who has more to play for in 2010.
If the prolific forward does what is best for Spain, and misses
two months of the new year on surgery and rehab, then certain other
members of the Liverpool squad
with one eye on South Africa might be tempted to ease up,
conserving their energies for a potentially momentous summer.
Torres can "continue to manage the injury through'', in the
words of Rafael Benítez, resting religiously between games and
operating at only 90 per cent. Or he can confront a condition that
threatens the pace and mobility that Spain will rely on in the
World Cup.