Torres: El Niño: My Story

by Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres is one of the hottest properties in world football. From local Madrid idol to Kop hero and European Championship winner, he talks here for the first time about the unique challenges faced in his two seasons in England, with candid snapshots of his early years in Spain and life in the North West on and off the field. Born in Madrid in March 1984, he played for his first football team at age five as a goalkeeper and signed as a professional for Atletico Madrid at 15, making his first-team debut two years later. After 200 appearances for Atletico, he was signed for a club-record £20 million by Liverpool in July 2007, and in his debut season in the Premier League became the first Liverpool player in 12 years to score 20 goals. He made his debut for Spain in 2003, has amassed over 50 caps to date, and has played in two European Championships and one World Cup. He scored the winning goal for Spain in the 2008 European Championships Final. He has an older brother and sister, and has a current personal fortune estimated at more than £14 million.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Football, Biography, Autobiography

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Fernando Torres (born Fernando José Torres Sanz) is a Double European and World Champion in Football for Spain.

He is also a European Champion having won the title in the 2011-2012 season playing for Chelsea.

Reviews

[Sumit Singla · Rating 4 out of 5]

2008-09, possibly one of the best Premier League seasons I've ever seen Liverpool play. Falling just short of the coveted trophy, but oh, what a chase!

That was probably the zenith of El Nino's career as well, which spiralled downwards rapidly after that. Beleagured Liverpool couldn't afford to get new players, and young Torres craved silverware, leading to a much-hyped 50 million move to a club most Kopites despise - Chelsea.

Someday, Torres might have a story to tell - of why he left a club he loved. What happened next? Why or how did he lose his fearsome speed and skill?

This is not that story.

This is the story of a boy who dreamed. And a boy who made it big with two massive European clubs. This is the story of a shy, unassuming boy who had the world at his feet, and lived the dream of crowds chanting his name, game after game after game.

This is the story of Fernando Torres, who still remains one of my favourite players to ever have played for Liverpool.

El Nino, You'll Never Walk Alone.

[Alex T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

That biography would’ve had a more profound impact on me if I had read it when Fernando was still at Liverpool. Now it’s just a story of a talented young atleti player who wanted to improve his game and found himself doing that in one of the best football clubs in the world. Reading that today, from a not that glorious perspective of Fernando leaving Liverpool the way he did, it’s not that powerful as it would have been all those years ago. Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading about his experiences at Liverpool and at Atletico.

[Presiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is not much to say about this book. It's the story of the football player Fernando Torres, mostly about his signing to Liverpool and the years he spent there. Torres has been my idol and hero for more than 5 years now so this book is everything to me. However, some of the things weren't chronologically displayed and it was a bit confusing but still it was a pretty good insight into his real character. There were many pictures, which brought back lots of good memories about some memorable games. One thing I would love to read about is his real story about Chelsea and the things that happened there but that is just a dream for now...

[PCKPS · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been with me since the day it has been released. I have been a fan of him since the euro 2008 cup which he scored the winner. I am also a footballer myself and like the style of the way he plays and was fascinated since because he had a great background and since the day one I was impressed and got to finish the book in 2 days but till this day when I get bored I still read the book and it is the first book of my shelf I would recommend to anyone. Not everyone would like the structure but for me the book was not about the words but was about his information and i felt that I know him real close to him.

[Jobair H · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I think about this book is that it is hard to not want to keep reading more and more. This is a story on how Fernando Torres had transferred from Athletico Madrid but during then he had "You'll Never Walk Alone" printed on his captain armband and at that time he was excited for his move....And that is when Liverpool FC's saying was born.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Andrew Klob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a unique book that was written during the best part of Torres’s soccer career. This was an interesting combination of commentary on his upbringing, reflection on major moments in his career, and an insider view of life at Liverpool (with some focus on his time at Atletico and with the Spanish National Team). As Torres is my favorite player of all time, this was a truly nostalgic book to read as I looked back at pictures and read his commentary on some of the best moments of the career. With that said, I will say that the book is structured in way that it jumps around different parts of his career which caused me to get lost at times. In addition to that, this is not truly just a biography since it covers random information like his work with charities or his daily routine before games/at training (specifically only at Liverpool). At times it is very clear that was written for Liverpool fans during his time at Liverpool to show his love for them and the club so this causes very little to get covered about his time with the national time and Atletico. Despite that, even though it is not a full biography, it is the closest we have so far of a written biography (the video documentary entitled “The Last Symbol” is a more recent complete biography but obviously not in a book format). Either way, for fans of Torres, this is a must read. Looking back at all of the old pictures and reminiscing on some of his greatest goals was a truly enjoyable read. Definitely recommend!

[Darsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

so far the book has been very captivating and explains Torres hard life and how he found trouble to fit in an english speaking team, but eventually people helped him and he became a great player. It also talks about his hardships at Atletico Madrid and how he didn't want to leave.

[Kusma Adika · Rating 4 out of 5]

El Nino.

El mejor número 9 durante su permanencia en el Liverpool.

[sara]

I can’t believe I never added this to my goodreads

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book about a player who used to be fantastic whenever he played except for when he played for Chelsea

[Farsha R. Sofyria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally kick this out of my 2010's TBR list ♡♡♡

[Wesley Terpstra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever wonder what it’s like to see the world through the eyes of a professional soccer player? Legendary Athletico Madrid, Liverpool, and Chelsea player Fernando Torres describes what his life was like trying to make it into the big leagues as a child while his family struggled to support him financially. After his amazing start with his boyhood club Athletico Madrid, he describes what it was like making his record-breaking transfer to England giants, Liverpool. There, he would describe the struggles of living up to his name, as well as adjusting to life in England, not knowing how to speak English all that well, and getting used to life outside of Spain. He then talks about his second record-breaking move to Chelsea, where he would go on to score one of the most famous goals in club history. After his spell in England, he describes his emotion when he was transferred back to his boyhood club, Athletico Madrid. Fernando talks about all the personal relationships he made along the way, as the struggles of always having to be in the spotlight.

The book is written quite well by Fernando, as well as some help from another author. He goes into great detail about all aspects about his life, and makes every chapter interesting. It is an easy read for most people. Torres lets the readers know what his life is like from his own eyes by using great description.

I recommend this book for anyone ages 12 and up. The language is descriptive, yet easy to read and understand. Most sports fans, especially soccer fans will enjoy this book. Overall, it is a great read and a good viewpoint into the life of a professional soccer player.

[Kalkeydan Ayele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Torres el Nino My Story
Torres el nino My Story is probably the best autobiography iv ever read. Torres writes about his life growing up in Madrid and how he wanted to become a goalkeeper but ended up injuring his finger and switched over to a striker. And that was the start of a legend.

I really connected with this autobiography because of how Torres had to play with the older kids when he was growing up and how he had to tryout with kids that where older than him. And I could connect with that because I most all ways play and tryout for teams with older kids there. I also connected with this book on how Torres was very close to his family and thats kind off how my family are we all have to agree on something to make it work.

I think Torres is trying to write about how he grew up supporting the second team in Madrid (Atletico Madrid.) and how he was loyal and waited for the right time to make big decisions like when to leave his local club for one of the biggest in england and I think he is trying to show that patients will pay off later in life.



Torres shows that he is one of the best Liverpool strikers of all time by his goal scoring stats he had in his first season at the club. And he also showed that he was a young leader of men because he took over
the Atletico Madrid captains armband at only 18 years old

In conclusion I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading about the life of one of Spain's and Liverpool's top strikers. I really liked this autobiography its definitely one of the best iv ever read.

[Tarek · Rating 4 out of 5]

This non-fiction autobiography was a great read for me. I enjoyed the book because it was a thrilling story about how Torres, the very much appreciated and famous soccer player, used to live and how he came into the world of soccer. His inspiring story began with him playing for a small kids league which he barely had the money to pay for, and then transformed by the end of the book with him playing for an enormous club, Liverpool F.C., and being extremely wealthy and famous. I think this book is a great read for soccer players who aspire to become as successful as Fernando Torres, or even for people who love the sport.

[Will F · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that this book was one of the best autobiographies I have ever read as I never knew just how normal Fernando Torres's life was until I read this book.
It really gives you the feel that if you believe that you are good enough to play football for a living you can.
He tells you how his life from living in Spain to living in Liverpool has changed his life and how he met his girlfriend and the charity work he does

[Tasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I opened this again after it has been sitting on my shelf for a long long time and before this I actually covered my disappointment in this one with my obsession towards him.

Now though, looking at it again, it still irks me how the book content isn't ordered chronologically :/ And how there were more pictures than words..

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a shame to see him leave Anfield, but this gives excellent coverage of the transition from being a huge talent in Spain to a legend on Merseyside. Extremely easy to read and top notch photo collection to light the way.

[M De · Rating 5 out of 5]

it's good to read about the beginnings of 'el niño' and to understand the footballer's ascent to fame so far... i'd love to read a follow-up with the world cup and euro glories as well as the chelsea years!

[Madhuri]

my fave footballer in the entire world..
i loved it obviously


to me you're like a grown addiction that i can't deny
won't you tell me is it healthy babe? (8)

[Anisza]

Destiny seemed to have decided that if i ever left Atletico Madrid it would be for Liverpool.

[Simon Dupond · Rating 4 out of 5]

All on Fernando Torres's (Football Player) life.

[Negar T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was an amazing book.
I specially liked it because I Love Fernando Torres and he is my Idol.
I recommend people to read this book :)

[Siam ZR · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a great book. Manything to learn from it.

[Jared Harrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for work, not bad if your into the life story of Fernando Torres