Liverpool's Torres: Ronaldo Is 'A Machine'

Liverpool's number nine thinks that the Manchester United man is in 'a class of his own' and that it is he, not Torres, who deserves to land the FIFA World Player of the Year Award when its winner is announced in January.

You might not expect Fernando Torres to think too highly of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Spanish superstar plays for Liverpool after all, and those of a red persuasion on Merseyside do not tend to feel too much warmth for their bitter rivals on the other side of Lancashire.

But Liverpool's number nine thinks that the Manchester United man is in "a class of his own" and that it is he, not Torres, who deserves to land the FIFA World Player of the Year Award when its winner is announced in January.

The two players are both on a 23-man shortlist, but Torres clearly feels that the winner should be a foregone conclusion.

"No-one can rival him," the Spaniard told France Football. "He is in a class of his own. I have never seen a comparable player."

And Torres thinks that Ronaldo's feats in scoring 42 goals and winning both the Premier League and the Champions League should be more than enough for the Portugal international to collect the prize

"What he did last season is incredible. No-one won this year what he's won: UEFA Champions League, Premier League and Golden Boot," he added.

Torres could point to his own record last season: 33 goals for Liverpool (24 in the league) and a European Championship medal in Switzerland and Austria with Spain. But Torres is clearly in a gracious mood and feels that Ronaldo is simply the best there is at the moment.

"For me he is the best player in the world," Torres explained. "A machine. Incomparable."