We saw him growing up when he joined our Academy in 1995 at the age of 11, when he was an “Alevín”. He made his first team debut on May 27th of 2001, wearing the number 35. The Vicente Calderón was full during the league match against CD Leganés. He moved an entire nation on June 29th of 2008, when Spain won the second European Championship in its history with Luis Aragonés on the bench. Almost ten years later, on May 20th of 2018, he put everyone at the Wanda Metropolitano on their feet by scoring twice against Eibar during his farewell to Atlético Madrid..

After all these plentiful and precious moments, it’s time to say goodbye. Through a video published in his social networks, Fernando Torres has announced that he is to retire from professional football. Next Sunday 23rd at 10:10 a.m. local time in Japan, he will grant a press conference in Tokyo.During his career he became a legend by his own merits, and left an unforgettable mark both in the field and in the hearts of everyone he worked with.

Formed in the Red & White Academy since 1995, he completed his journey through the youth categories on May 27th of 2001. Just one week after, he scored his first goal with the first team in the Carlos Belmonte Stadium in Albacete. After this first goal, he scored 128 more as an Atlético player, becoming Atleti's sixth ever top goalscorer. However, that was one of his last summits reached in a career in which numerous landmarks took place before his farewell against Eibar.

He was a key piece in the First Division ascent during the 2001/02 season. During this time, he marked the beginning of a fruitful relationship with one of the greatest Red & White legends: Luis Aragonés. Six years later, they both made history with the national team.

He became the champion and maximum scorer during the European U16 and U19 tournaments in 2001 and 2002. Fernando Torres was a fundamental piece of “La Roja” between 2008 and 2012, which is considered the national team’s victorious cycle, where he won two Eurocups in 2008 and 2012, and the World Cup in 2010. During the 2008 Eurocup final, he scored the goal that led Spain to victory against Germany (1-0). In this memorable goal, Torres defeated Lahm while sprinting and subtly dodged Jens Lehmann. This year, “El Niño” completed the Ballon d'Or podium, and became our first player formed in the Atlético de Madrid Academy who reached this award.

  

Fernando conveyed his passion for Atlético de Madrid everywhere he went; Liverpool, London, Milan, and following his second departure from our club, in Tosu. Before coming back to Atlético de Madrid for his second cycle, he earnt the affection of Liverpool’s fans, won the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League while playing for Chelsea FC, and briefly played for AC Milan. His return took place during Christmas and on January 4th of 2015, over 45.000 fans attended his presentation at the Vicente Calderón.

  

Ever since, another three years and a half have passed by, and our forward from Fuenlabrada enjoyed one of the most glorious cycles in our history. As an “Atlético”, there couldn’t be a better end to his cycle while playing for the club. On May 16th of 2018, he won the third UEFA Europa League in Lyon and only four days later, he said farewell at the Wanda Metropolitano. It was an evening to remember where all the fans attended the game against Eibar, which concluded with a brilliant commemoration of his career.

Later on, Torres set his path towards Japan, where he closed the season scoring a goal, which saved Sagan Tosu in Japan's first division. Sagan Tosu became the last stop in his brilliant career that we feel incredibly proud and grateful for.

Congratulations, Fernando.

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