Fernando Torres has conceded that he owes Liverpool a "huge amount" for the player that he has become.
The Spanish international spent four years on Merseyside before leaving to join Premier League rivals Chelsea in a deal worth £50m in January 2011.
Asked by The Guardian what his time at Anfield meant to him, the 28-year-old replied: "I owe Liverpool a huge amount. To the people, to the men in charge, to Benítez and his staff, to the city. Liverpool is a fundamental part of my life. They don't remember me that way, but time will change that.
"I could not have chosen a better place to go when I left Atletico. The other day when the news broke about Hillsborough, I felt emotional. I have experienced that,
"I know what the people have been through, I have seen them cry. I've lived that, I made it mine. This has arrived too late but it's another step [in the right direction]. And it is things like that that playing for Liverpool gives you. It's a feeling."
Torres's departure to a league rival is still something that some Liverpool supporters have refused to forgive.
However, the frontman has insisted that the truth regarding his transfer has yet to be revealed.
"I decided to leave because I had to take a step forwards. It wasn't the best way to have gone but nor were things exactly as they were sold [to people]," he added.
"One day the truth will come out. In a sporting sense, nothing was happening; a new project was needed. We talked about that – about growth.
"My son is a Liverpool fan and he was already kicking a ball before he was one. He was born in the football city - he had no choice."
Torres scored 81 goals from 142 outings for Liverpool.
Liam Apicella
