Is It Time for Liverpool To Cash in on Fernando Torres?

The idea of selling Fernando Torres will sends chills down the spine of most fans of Liverpool Football Club. Since arriving in the English Premier League after a big money move from Atletico Madrid, the Spaniard has turned himself into one of the leading strikers of world football and is the darling of The Kop. He has gone on to become not only a European, but a World Champion with the national team and has terrorised Premiership defences, winning games against Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal. To sell Torres is unthinkable because the predatory instincts of the Spanish forward is a vital component of a title winning side.

However, the reality for Liverpool fans is their club is no longer a title winning side. They may have come close two years ago under Rafa Benitez, but since then a combination of the disastrous reign of the American owners and the erratic transfer dealings of the now Inter Milan boss have resulted in an almost unbelievable fall from grace for the Reds, who incredibly now occupy the relegation zone.

For Liverpool to move forward, they have to first accept the position they now find themselves in. They are no longer title contenders, they are barely Champions League contenders and the club has to regroup in order to allow themselves to rebuild and once again establish themselves as a top four side.

As talented a player as Torres is, the reality is he is no longer the player he was two seasons ago. Of course, he is certainly capable of recapturing this form but such is the dilemma Liverpool find themselves in, they cannot allow themselves to wait for this to happen. Undoubtedly, sales of Liverpool shirts would fall if the number 9 left, but there has to be a bigger picture and if the Reds were to cash in the January transfer window, they would be able to command a significant sum of money for the player from the likes of Man City or Chelsea.

At the moment, Liverpool are far too reliant who a man who cannot currently be relied on. The groin injury picked up in the opening minutes of Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Blackpool which has ruled him out of the Euro 2012 qualifier with Scotland next week is just the latest in a string of injuries picked up by the Spaniard over the past 12 months. He is also a doubt for the Merseyside derby on October 16th, a match which is even more significant than usual given both teams find themselves in relegation territory.

The injuries Torres has suffered have meant that not only can he not be relied upon to start consistently but when he is playing, he is lacking the sharpness which made him one of the most feared strikers. While it could be argued this is down to the poor Liverpool side around him, he was equally sluggish in the World Cup - despite playing with a team who ultimately went onto be crowned champions.

As heartbreaking as it would be for Liverpool fans for Fernando Torres to leave Anfield, it could now be time to for the financially stricken Reds to cash in on the hitman and invest in a less talented, but more reliable and stable strike partnership who can help ensure Liverpool remain at least on the fringes of the UEFA Champions League.

If they can do that, Liverpool Football Club will always be big enough that they can attract players and once the mess involving the American owners is settled, the club will definitely be in a position to challenge for the title once more.

Written by Colin Hill, a sports writer who blogs about kids football kits.