Sitting gloomily in the stands watching Spain's 6-0 Euro 2012 qualifying win over Liechtenstein was a spectator who had very good reason for expecting to be placed a little closer to the action. Unfortunately for Fernando Torres, the troubling spell he is having for his club is being mirrored at international level with El Niño rapidly slipping down the pecking order for the world champions.
Whilst Torres no doubt guessed that his chances of starting Tuesday's clash in Logroñes were slim with David Villa the undeniable big cheese of Vicente Del Bosque's side, the Chelsea man would surely have been expecting at least a spot on the bench and perhaps a short second-half cameo. Although some reports claim he was suffering a slight groin strain, most Spanish sources say the striker was dropped from the national side for the first time since 2006, resulting in Torres being a frustrated fan rather than a footballer with new teammate Juan Mata, Villa and Alvaro Negredo lining up in Spain's front three with Fernando Llorente chosen as a back-up from the bench.
Whilst the rise of the Athletic Bilbao striker to challenge Torres' role of first forward understudy has been going on for a good year now, what is considerably more recent is the emergence of Alvaro Negredo, which has pundits musing that Torres may well struggle to make the squad for Euro 2012, no matter how incredible that must sound to those living in countries not blessed with Spain's wealth of striking talent. 'It was a message to Torres that if there's no improvement with Chelsea then the gates to the national side could begin to close,' warned AS.
The Sevilla man's two goals against Liechtenstein on Tuesday continue a fine period of form for Negredo, who scored a brace in his club's opening 2-1 win over Málaga, having become the top Spanish scorer in la Primera last season with 20 strikes. But this isn't so much the case of a striker coming out of nowhere to become a new shooting star of la Liga - with Negredo having made his first Spain start two years ago - but a footballer finally getting his very complicated head together to deliver on his enormous potential.
Negredo's career began when being picked up by his local side Rayo Vallecano at the age of 14 before Real Madrid noticed the youngster's talent in 2005 and brought him into the same second-string team that Juan Mata played in. But like Mata, Negredo found his way to the first team blocked so moved on to Almería to have a hugely successful two-season spell at the then newly-promoted club, knocking in 32 goals.
The forward returned to Real Madrid, who triggered his buy-back clause, but once again, Negredo was rejected by the Santiago Bernabeu club, who immediately sold him on to Sevilla in 2009. This double rejection seemed to play on the striker's mind - a mind that was always a moody, antagonistic place to be. "I did not want to be their make weight," said Negredo after a second buy-back option for Madrid expired in July.
In Negredo's first season in the Sánchez Pizjuán, Negredo had spats with managers, fellow players and even the crowd with the forward unable to focus his bottomless bit of ire into banging in goals on a consistent basis. Rather than being a great goalscorer, Negredo was still the cliché of being a scorer of great goals.
"My first year was not good, but I learned from my mistakes," admitted Negredo over the summer. "Things have gone well since, the best form of learning is from players with the quality of Luis Fabiano and Kanouté."
However, it was those two strikers who may have caused Negredo to move up a notch or two in another way and have a considerably improved second season with Sevilla. Luis Fabiano left in the winter window of 2011, whilst Kanouté struggled with fitness to leave Negredo as the forward charged with the responsibility of dragging a troubled Sevilla side to the European places.
The aggression that Negredo has always carried with him was channelled into his game and has turned the forward into a committed and versatile striker capable of putting his head in where it hurts in the heart of the box along with outrageous lobs and long shots. This focused determination was on display in the win against Málaga with the first effort being a bullet header from a Jesus Navas cross, with the second being a perfectly placed shot into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the box. Both goals were celebrated by a shaven-headed, snarling Negredo with obvious relish.
Negredo knows more than anyone else that an awful lot can change over the course of the season, but the Sevilla striker dealt a strong blow to Torres on Tuesday night with his brace and said after the game that "I really understand his disappointment. It's never a good thing when you travel with the national team without playing a single minute. He's a great team-mate though and is still one of the leaders of the side."
If Torres wants to avoid more consoling words but this time over his potential absence from the Euro 2012 squad, then the Chelsea man is going to have to rediscover his form fast as at the moment, the former golden child of Spanish football is becoming a forgotten man.
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