Torres a doubt for Reds' next three games

Striker Fernando Torres is likely to miss Liverpool's next three matches with a hamstring strain, manager Rafa Benitez says.

Liverpool are set to be without the services of their star striker Fernando Torres for at least the next three games after he injured a hamstring playing for Spain against Belgium.

LONDON // Striker Fernando Torres is likely to miss Liverpool's next three matches with a hamstring strain, manager Rafa Benitez said today. Torres, who limped off early in Spain's 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Belgium on Wednesday, is expected to be sidelined for next week's Champions League match with Atletico Madrid and Premier League games against Wigan Athletic and Chelsea.

"I am very disappointed about this because it now looks like we will lose Fernando for three very important games," Benitez told the club's website. The injury is a double blow for Madrid-born Torres, who will miss an emotional return to his former club Atletico. Liverpool do not know where Wednesday's Group D match will be played yet after Uefa handed Atletico a two-match home stadium ban for crowd problems at their recent match against Marseille.

Benitez has also been hit by an injury to the Dutch winger Ryan Babel, who hurt his ankle in the win over Norway on Wednesday. It was not known how long he will be ruled out for. The Spanish coach said a hectic international schedule was putting a strain on players and called for change. "There are too many international games and the demands on the players are too much. Someone needs to analyse this situation because it is putting the players at risk of injury," said Benitez.

"Maybe the answer is for there to be a two-tier qualifying system because there are too many games in the qualifiers for the World Cup and the European Championship which are not competitive but which still place great demands on the players. "These fixtures are unnecessary and maybe it would be better if the weaker countries played one another and the best of them went to play the stronger countries in the qualifiers."

*Reuters