Gerd Muller. Ronaldo. Andres Iniesta. Mario Goetze. And now Ferran Torres. The Barcelona forward joined a selected list of elite individuals to have scored the World Cup final winner, when he scored the only goal for Spain against Argentina on Sunday.
Torres featured in every one of La Roja’s encounters through their unbeaten run in the tournament. The winger started the first game against Cape Verde before losing his spot to Alex Baena, but made crucial contributions off the bench.
None more so than the exquisite volley he smashed into the roof of the net in the 106th minute to add a second star to Spain’s crest. However, lest we forget, Torres also provided the assist for Mikel Merino’s injury time winner against Portugal in the Round of 16.
Torres has truly come of age for Spain under head coach Luis de la Fuente. The 26-year-old also recently enjoyed his best campaign in Catalunya, netting 21 times to charge Barcelona to the La Liga title.
His club is bound to be in festive mood, with eight of Barcelona’s men playing a role in Spain’s ascent to world champions. However, with celebrations underway, the city’s most treasured star at the moment is proving to be a pain instead.
Torres’ recent success at Spain seems to be driven by a closely knit group he has formed in the squad. But shockingly for fans, none of his three best mates are from the club he represents.
Credit- Instagram (@alexbbaena)
Instead, Torres has formed bonds with Atletico Madrid trio Marcos Llorente, Marc Pubil, and Baena, the quartet often captured spending time together. Their camaraderie extends to the virtual world too, in the form of extensively romantic comments on each other posts, for lack of a better word.
Torres seems to be particularly fond of Llorente. Exhibit A is his recent remark on Llorente’s Instagram.
Credit- Instagram (@marcosllorente)
The duo even indulging in some questionable celebration practices during Spain’s champions parade.
El morreo de Ferrán y Llorente q cojones es 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/T4DReeCSgF
— Bú (@LawsonCabron) July 20, 2026
Llorente and Torres have also been captured sitting next to each other on the bus.
In fact, at present Torres seems to be celebrating the World Cup victory in Ibiza along with Llorente. The latter uploaded a picture of sharing champagne with a shirtless Torres while paying homage to the Barca man’s viral chant that has taken on new significance at the World Cup.
Credit- Instagram (@marcosllorente)
It is not the first time the Spanish friends have celebrated in private.
Both Baena and Llorente have shared pictures of the group celebrating the World Cup amongst themselves, with Torres being the common factor. Llorente’s story showed the celebrations continuing to the hotel room too, drinking wine with Torres and Pubil.
Torres could not have picked a worse time to befriend Atletico players. Even though La Rojiblancos finished 25 points behind Barcelona in the league, they crushed Culer dreams twice within a fortnight in April.
Atletico first eliminated Barcelona from the Copa del Rey race in the semi-final on the back of a 4-0 win in the first leg. Less than a week later, the Madrid outfit sent the Catalunians crashing out of the Champions League quarter final with a 3-2 aggregate scoreline.
However, fans believe something even more sinister in the works. With Atletico star forward Julian Alvarez publicly pushing for a move away from the club and Barca leading the way as potential destination, the supporters believe Torres might get tangled in the mess.
Atletico have been very stubborn with the sale and publicly trolled Barcelona’s offers, but Alvarez’ discontent is bound to push the needle. With Torres’ hype at an all-time high, the club could try to ask for Torres as a replacement for their Argentina striker.
The deal might interest Barcelona too, given their riches in the forward department. Even last season, Torres only played the entire 90 five times in the league and once in the Champions League.
The seeds are certainly sowed for Torres soon donning red and white. It would be his third club in Spain, having started his professional career with Valencia. Only time will tell whether Barcelona fans’ horrors come true.
