Ferran Torres ‘comfortable’ to fill the role as Manchester City’s number nine

Ferran Torres believes he can continue to make a positive contribution in the number nine role at Manchester City.

The 20-year-old scored their second goal starting as a striker during City’s 2-0 win over Newcastle on Boxing Day.

With Gabriel Jesus unavailable and Sergio Aguero only coming off the bench, Torres had a positive impact starting as the central attacker.

Ferran Torres scored the second in a 2-0 Boxing Day win for Manchester City over Newcastle

Ferran Torres scored the second in a 2-0 Boxing Day win for Manchester City over Newcastle

And Torres who signed from Valencia for around £20m in the summer as a replacement for winger Leroy Sane, believes he can take the weight off the shoulders of Aguero and Jesus this season when needed.

‘I’m comfortable (playing at striker) and happy with the goal today,’ he told the club’s official website. ‘I just have to keep on working to keep scoring more goals.

‘The manager at half-time just wanted us to keep doing our jobs, find the spaces, and make the most of them.

‘It’s important for us to score goals, and to play well up front, but it’s just as important to not concede and to have good performances offensively and that’s what we’re doing.’

City are starting to crank up the pressure on the teams at the top of the table below Liverpool with three successive victories and boasting the league’s best defence. 

Pep Guardiola’s side found it hard to break down Newcastle on Boxing Day, but Torres was happy with how his team dug deep to walk away with the points,

Pep Guardiola played Torres as a number nine in place of Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus

Pep Guardiola played Torres as a number nine in place of Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus

He said: ‘They were very well set up and they tried to defend deep and we just needed to do the job and we did it.

‘City are a big team, so we always have to win and that is something that is happening now and we just need to keep the momentum now.’

Aguero will be expected to get back into the starting line-up with two tough games ahead against Everton on Monday, then Chelsea on January 3.

But Torres will have impressed Guardiola enough to start again as number nine if needed. 

Torres believes he is can fill the role and take the weight off Aguero and Jesus' shoulders

Torres believes he is can fill the role and take the weight off Aguero and Jesus’ shoulders

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