Torres: Gerrard is the best I've ever played with

Fernando Torres has hailed former Liverpool team-mate Steven Gerrard as the best player he’s ever played with.

The 31-year-old spent three and a half years at Anfield, scoring 81 goals in 142 appearances, before joining Chelsea for £50 million in January 2011.

Torres, who has won the Champions League and FA Cup with Chelsea, as well as two European Championships and a World Cup with Spain, has played alongside the likes of Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and Eden Hazard - but the striker insists the Liverpool captain is closest to his version of an “ideal footballer”.

"It is difficult to say as I have had the good fortune to play with so many great players," Torres told Marca Plus magazine.

”For me the best is, and has been, Gerrard. I would choose him, above all, to have him behind me in my team.

"Steven Gerrard is the best footballer I have played with over my career, so my ideal footballer would be very similar to him."