Liverpool striker Fernando Torres is facing pressure from Spain officials to undergo hernia surgery.

The Telegraph says Torres faces a choice of immense significance for Liverpool. Club or country? Who has more to play for in 2010.

If the prolific forward does what is best for Spain, and misses two months of the new year on surgery and rehab, then certain other members of the Liverpool squad with one eye on South Africa might be tempted to ease up, conserving their energies for a potentially momentous summer.

Torres can "continue to manage the injury through'', in the words of Rafael Benítez, resting religiously between games and operating at only 90 per cent. Or he can confront a condition that threatens the pace and mobility that Spain will rely on in the World Cup.