Torres: An Intimate Portrait of the Kid Who Became King

national side persuade me to vote for Fernando, who this year has become the complete footballer,’ argues Francisco Rivas García,
El Heraldo
, Honduras. Who did the English representatives, Max Marquis and Henry Winter, of the
Daily Telegraph
, vote for? For Cristiano. In their order of preference, Torres is second. Paco Aguilar, of Spain’s
Mundo Deportivo
, chose Xavi. A confirmation of what has been said before.
    And what does Fernando Torres think of his ‘bronze
ballon
?’ ‘The prize is an important recognition, which comes just as I’m recovering from an injury (picked up on 26 November, during the Champions League game against Marseille. The prognosis is that he should be fit again within about four weeks). It’ll give me a boost to get back to playing again as soon as possible.’
    He is proud to have made the third spot and expresses his gratitude to his team-mates at Liverpool and in the national side: ‘Their support has been both significant and essential and their contribution is one of the reasons that I can enjoy this event today.’ He knows that 2008 has been a fantastic year. ‘This has been my best year as a professional player, different from what I was used to. I arrived at a great club,’ he explained, ‘that gave me the opportunity to play at the highest level, to play in the Champions League and to learn from some of the best in the world.’ As a smart pupil who went on to get good marks at school, he says the prize is simply a motivation to do better.
    On 12 January, 2009, the story repeats itself. On the stage of the Zurich Opera House there are five people seated in the front row, waiting for Pelé to open the envelope containing the name of the successor to Kaká, FIFA World Player of the Year 2007. Brazil’s former Number 10 is more emotional than the candidates themselves. He has some difficulty in opening the secret envelope. Once he has succeeded – and before revealing the winner’s name to the television cameras – he remembers that, when he presented the prize the previous year to his compatriot, Ricardo Izecson Dos Santos Leite (aka Kaká), he assured Ronaldo in Portuguese, ‘Next year, you will be the winner.’
    And, sure enough, Cristiano Ronaldo is FIFA World Player 2008, picking up his fifth crown of the season. In-between one trophy and another, the Number 7 was also in the Manchester United side that won the FIFA Club World Cup on 21 December in Yokohama, Japan, beating Ecuadorian side, Quito (holders of the 2008 Copa Libertadores) 1-0. Cristiano, according to the votes cast by 155 national team managers and captains, got 935 votes. Since the previous year, he has gone from third to top spot. Runner-up for the second year in succession is Lionel Messi with 678 votes. Third is Fernando Torres on 203 points. El Niño confirms his
Ballon d’Or
position in front of Kaká (183 votes) and Xavi (155). Casillas is eighth. ‘It’s really important to be here,’ declares Torres, formally dressed in white shirt, black jacket and tie. ‘I wasn’t expecting it. I had just changed my team and country but I adapted to English football really quickly. After that, I began to score goals and that made it all much easier. After not winning a trophy with Liverpool, which was what I really wanted – because they have given me so much and I wanted to give them something back in return – the trophy arrived with the national side. Something probably even more unexpected. After a long time, Spain is once again one of the best. And me scoring in the final. I’m here because of that. But without all the efforts of my team-mates, I wouldn’t have this recognition,’ says the modest blond lad. And for the Spanish fans, he adds: ‘It’s really good that two players from our country are amongst the finalists. Let’s hope it’s the beginning of a phase in which our footballers are always present.’ A great night, he says, the first in his career in Zurich. To him, his third place behind two world stars seems fair because ‘Messi is the best in the world and Cristiano Ronaldo is the one who’s had the best year. But my aim is to improve season on season. I don’t look back. I want to do things well so that when the 2009 (awards) come round I can once again be one of the candidates.’ He is asked if one day he will win one of these two trophies and he modestly replies: ‘To win one it’s clear that there’ve got to be a lot of favourable circumstances. There are