Soccer:Liverpool striker Fernando Torres has dismissed suggestions he went through a confidence crisis at Anfield earlier this season.
The Spain international showed he was close to his lethal best with two fine goals in the 2-0 victory over Premier League leaders Chelsea yesterday.
It doubled his tally for the season, but two goals in his previous 12 matches had resulted in the 26-year-old being criticised for cutting a frustrated figure on the field with much speculation about his state of mind.
Torres, who admitted the injuries he had battled in the first seven months of the year had taken their toll, insisted he had not been struggling mentally.
"The confidence has never been a problem," he said. "But we all needed time to play well with new players and a new manager and new ideas."
Torres said the win over Chelsea, their third successive league victory and fourth in all competitions, had given everyone a significant boost.
"We knew before the game if we beat them we would get more confidence but the three points is the best thing," added Torres. "We are improving and this kind of result gives us more confidence, we are going forward in the table and are quite happy about that.
"The team is playing well and when the team is playing well the players will play better, so it is good for everyone. This is a tough week with two games in five days so we have to forget this game and start thinking about Wigan (on Wednesday) and Stoke."