Ferran Torres

[AjcW]

State of the reactions  

 

Lads 19 and highly rated! Let’s not turn in to Man Utd fans ey guys... just enjoy the ride! It’s been a great summer so far.

[Finnegan]

7 minutes ago, SheppyFox said:

Torres has abysmal stats. I conclude it must be Gonçalo Guedes.

 

 

Whilst not impossible, it's not likely to be any of Valencia's key players given they're a champions league club owned by Peter Lim. 

[los dedos]

Rodrigo ? Bit older but maybe going for experience. 

[Poznan34]

8 minutes ago, SO1 said:

Surely one for the future. 3 goals in 37 appearances. He can't be the 30/50 guy. Looks class on YT.

tbf only 10 of those apps were starts

[Finnegan]

1 minute ago, los dedos said:

Rodrigo ? Bit older but maybe going for experience. 

 

1 minute ago, Finnegan said:

 

Whilst not impossible, it's not likely to be any of Valencia's key players given they're a champions league club owned by Peter Lim. 

 

[LCCFox96]

1 minute ago, Foxy_Bear said:

Hos stats aren't great but for a 19 year old in La liga.... There not exactly terrible. 

 

I agree, but for this signing, if we are to go all out and go for it, we need better than not exactly terrible for a 19 year old. If we had two great wingers and brought Torres in as an understudy/prospect then I'd be pretty pleased with that. But unless he explodes and really kicks on next season and I can't see him having the impact we're hoping for from this much mooted new winger

[Scotch]

Just now, LCCFox96 said:

 

I agree, but for this signing, if we are to go all out and go for it, we need better than not exactly terrible for a 19 year old. If we had two great wingers and brought Torres in as an understudy/prospect then I'd be pretty pleased with that. But unless he explodes and really kicks on next season and I can't see him having the impact we're hoping for from this much mooted new winger

Fair point. 

[STUHILL]

10 minutes ago, SO1 said:

Surely one for the future. 3 goals in 37 appearances. He can't be the 30/50 guy. Looks class on YT.

'Ferrán recently signed a new deal at Valencia which includes a €100m buy-out clause'

 

He might be! He won't be cheap!

 

 

 

[Nicolo Barella]

I like this signing, provided its for a reasonable price! I absolutely don't want to push Barnes out the team, but neither do I want him comfortable. If we sell Gray I'd be very happy with wings of Barnes/Albrighton Perez/Torres

[stu]

Doesn’t appear to fit with what has been suggested we are after in a winger, i.e. a left footed right winger.

 

Whilst a right winger this lad appears to to be right footed according to the well known stat sites.

[Goober]

Sounds a good player in the articles posted earlier in the thread

[jonthefox]

Maxi Gomez ?.

[DerbyshireFox]

36 minutes ago, SheppyFox said:

Torres has abysmal stats. I conclude it must be Gonçalo Guedes.

 

??????

[wattolcfc]

Who's Valencias best winger on Football Manager? Sign him.

[Frost]

Off your head if you think Guedes would come here.

[jonthefox]

3 minutes ago, Frost said:

Off your head if you think Guedes would come here.

12 months ago i would have said the same about Tielemans. 

[Frost]

1 hour ago, jonthefox said:

12 months ago i would have said the same about Tielemans. 

Guedes has been excellent for a club who will play in the CL next season so it's not particularly comparable. He also cost over £30m from PSG to turn his loan into a permanent  deal, so probablh wouldn't leave for under £60m realistically.

 

Tielemans is a different case. Wasn't fancied in a side scrapping for relegation in Ligue 1, albeit an excellent prospect who stumbled at Monaco.

Edited 14 July 2019 by Frost

[StriderHiryu]

Might be Carlos Soler? Recently played at the U21 tournament where Spain won, coming off the bench in the final. I could also see Guedes coming to the Premier League, though it is a stretch to say it would be for us! Wolves could probably get hold of him thanks to their "special" connections mind.

 

Anyway even if it's the younger player Torres, signing a technical winger from Spain never sounds like a bad idea to me. The way Spanish players are developed is wonderful, all of the players are so skillful. If it's a decent price, keeping him for the future might well pay off.

 

But it doesn't take away from the fact that a clinical winger is the thing needed to bridge the gap to the top 6.

[RoyFox]

Regarding Torres....Please use per 90/min stats, he only played 863 mins in La Liga last season as he came on as a sub, so of course his ‘per game’ stats aren’t going to look great if he only played for 10 mins in some of those games.

 

His p90 key passes of 1.6 isn’t bad for his age in a competitive league, and that’s more than Vardy, Ricardo, Chilwell, Gray and Tielemens managed last season. 

Edited 14 July 2019 by RoyFox

[Tanya]

I am not over the moon about this, mostly cause I am keen for someone to come improve us straight  away. This lad, while class, still looks a little raw as a finisher. Although of course if the club sign him he will have my 100% backing

[MC Prussian]

Impressive stats for a four-year old.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apologies to all people born on the 29th of February, but I assume you catch my drift...

[urban.spaceman]

Ferran Torres: Have Valencia found the next Spanish prodigy?

February 16, 2019

Artwork by @chapulana

Some of the greatest players do indeed only come around once every four years but that is quite literally the case for Valencia’s Ferran Torres. Born 29 February, therefore celebrating his true birthday every leap year, the Valencian native broke into the senior team in the second half of the 2017/18 season and has set about impressing head coach Marcelino with the intention of becoming a first-team regular.

Joining the youth setup aged six, Torres was identified as one of the clubs most promising homegrown talents. His development led him to a debut with Valencia’s second string at just 16 years of age. A right-sided winger, Torres began to make the position his own.

His first goal for the second-string team came in matchday two against Girona’s B side Peralada. His fantastic start to the season was interrupted by the Under-17 European Championships. Torres was an integral cog in the Spanish machine which went on to win the competition, beating England on penalties in the final after eliminating Germany and France in the knock-out phases.

Torres returned to Valencia simply oozing confidence and after just four games with the second-string side, Torres was called up to be a part of Valencia’s senior squad. Still just 17 years old, after a few substitute appearances Torres was awarded his first start on 28 February 2018. The faith in Torres was rewarded and he provided the assist for Valencia’s sole goal of the 1-1 draw away at Athletic.

Despite Torres taking his chance he would only start one more game amongst a plethora of substitute appearances, but this would lay the foundation for the Spaniard to emerge as the bright spark of Valencia’s following season.

It is fair to say that Valencia have been an inconsistent side over the last few seasons. They have failed to establish an effective style of play after the departure of Unai Emery back in 2012. The four-year stay of Emery was succeeded by a variety of managers never lasting more than one full season until the appointment of Marcelino in 2017.

Since then, Marcelino has implemented a clear style. Our own David Selini’s fantastic piece detailing his style describes the compact defending and quick counter-attacking methods being imbued into this Valencia squad.

For this it is important for players like Torres when playing on the right of midfield to move with his fellow midfielders in unison to close the opposition when not in possession. Alternatively, Torres utilises his fantastic movement and positioning when Valencia are given the opportunity to hit the opposition on the break.

When on the defensive, one of the forwards drops back into the midfield to create a midfield five. Torres, wide left on this occasion, knows that it is his job to force the opposition player into the compacted system.

The compaction of the two midfielders, Torres and Parejo, and press from left full-back Lato, forces Lionel Messi inside. This increases the chance, however small with it being the Argentinian, of the forward making a more adventurous choice and therefore a higher chance of error.

Whilst Valencia were unsuccessful in ultimately holding onto their 2-0 lead at the Camp Nou, it was the pressure onto the loose ball and commitment from players such as Torres which meant Barcelona would only manage to steal a point from the team in white.

Ferran Torres’ heat map 2017/19 Ferran Torres’ heat map 2018/19

As you can see from the heat maps above, the main difference is the beginning of the versatility to play on either flank that has shone through this season. You can also see that Torres has done most of his work on the ball close to the touchline.

Typically, you would expect this from a winger, especially one so heavily right-footed. However, use of his lightning acceleration to his advantage before using his crossing abilities combine to make him a deadly force for Valencia.

The 2017/18 season brought with it the need for fast development. To play on the right flank for a side like Valencia which relies heavily on incisive balls into the opposition box, crossing success needs to be key. Therefore, whilst a 21.5% cross success rate is common for a player of Torres’ age, it was an element of his game which needed improvement.

Moving into 2018/19 Torres clearly put a higher percentage of effort into this part of his game and it has seen a huge amount of growth. Torres is not only attempting more average crosses per match (4.3) but has also more than doubled the success rate. Half his crosses in the league have met their intended targets.

The 3-0 home win against Villarreal was completed by a pass made by Torres. With his expert vision he was able to see the run of Rodrigo, and from a reserved position on the pitch the quality of the Spaniard’s pass to meet his compatriot was sublime.

Notice how the cross must be delivered extremely early for its effectiveness and chance of conversion to be as high as possible. Torres is excellent in these scenarios and is aware of when the chance’s window is open. He executes the cross and Rodrigo’s movement away from the Villarreal defender means he’s allowed the space to arrow the ball into the bottom corner.

The ability for a winger to get into the correct position for crosses will rely heavily not just on the movement and creation of space to receive the ball, but the very selfish ability to drive with the ball, take on defenders and beat them.

Torres, thankfully, is an accomplished dribbler and has a whole host of tricks to delight fans and baffle defenders. However, he has an archetypal trick which he uses to great success.

When a winger of great skill and pace looks to drive towards the opposition, its common to see defenders jockeying and retreating, biding their time before pouncing on the opportunity to steal possession. Torres uses this to his advantage. Torres does not allow the defenders time to jockey and drives directly at them before playing the ball several yards in front of him.

Then, using his rapid acceleration, he looks to beat defenders at will and hit a first-time cross upon running onto a pass effectively made to himself. The move is a brave one and often leads to one of three results. The first is success as shown in the images above. Secondly, the move fails, and the opposition manage to successfully prevent the move. Thirdly, the defender blocks Torres’ run and the Spaniard earns a free-kick in the opposition half. It is an effective move which over the year Torres has made his signature.

Torres has recently signed a new deal at Valencia which is no surprise considering their growing desire to see the youngster as a fulcrum in their setup in the seasons to come. The contract includes a €100 million buy-out clause. Ten years ago, that might have been a ‘impossible-to-buy’ clause but these days who knows?

What we do know is that Torres has the potential to be one La Liga‘s most creative wide players. If he can begin to increase the frequency of assists and goals to his game, in a couple years’ time there might be a hundred reasons to activate that clause rather than put teams off.

[Collymore]

4 hours ago, Ashley said:

So. For what its worth. 

 

"A lad from Valencia". 

 

Mark and Admins knew earlier however I didnt want to post because it was "a lad from Valencia" now unless were signing someone else from them I'm sure hes our man. 

Wait... What? Sorry, can you explain what this post means? Why didn't you want to post because it was "a lad from Valencia"? 

 

Loads of people repping you so people understand it but casting eyes on this post for the first time I'm utterly confused! 

Edited 15 July 2019 by Collymore

[Deeg67]

4 hours ago, Foxy_Bear said:

Hos stats aren't great but for a 19 year old in La liga.... There not exactly terrible. 

5 goals in 8 caps for the Spanish U-19s is better than not exactly terrible.

[Dan LCFC]

4 hours ago, StriderHiryu said:

Might be Carlos Soler? Recently played at the U21 tournament where Spain won, coming off the bench in the final. I could also see Guedes coming to the Premier League, though it is a stretch to say it would be for us! Wolves could probably get hold of him thanks to their "special" connections mind.

 

Anyway even if it's the younger player Torres, signing a technical winger from Spain never sounds like a bad idea to me. The way Spanish players are developed is wonderful, all of the players are so skillful. If it's a decent price, keeping him for the future might well pay off.

 

But it doesn't take away from the fact that a clinical winger is the thing needed to bridge the gap to the top 6.

Rodgers signs a lot of Spanish players as well. I think he's very much bought into the Spanish way of playing.