Torres not for sale, say Liverpool

Liverpool have rejected a bid for their Spain striker Fernando Torres from Premier League rivals Chelsea, British newspapers reported on Friday.

"Chelsea have made a bid for Fernando which has been turned down," a Liverpool spokesman was quoted as saying in The Times. "The player is not for sale."

The reports said Chelsea, who have slipped to the fringes of the title race after a poor run, had offered a British record fee of up to 40 million pounds ($63.62 million) for Torres.

Torres, who won the World Cup with Spain last year, joined Liverpool for a club record fee of about 20 million pounds in July 2007 from Atletico Madrid where he was idolised.

The 26-year-old scored nine league goals in 22 appearances.