TORRES WANTS GLORY DAYS BACK AT ATLETICO

Fernando Torres has set his sights on bringing the glory days back to Atletico Madrid after committing his future to the club until 2009.

The Spain striker was linked with big-money moves away from the Vicente Calderon this summer but opted to stick with his home-town club by signing a one-year extension to his existing contract.

Atletico have spent big during the close season in a bid to win their first Primera Liga title since 1996 - when they claimed the league-and-cup double - and Torres hopes he can play his part in the quest for silverware.

"I have experienced from the double to the demotion to the second division," the 22-year-old Atletico captain said at Tuesday's press conference.

"This club made my dream to become a professional footballer come true. I owe it a lot and now I want to help it get back to where it belongs. If not, I will continue to be indebted.

"We have to try to win titles."

Torres is now tied to Atletico until June 2009, but his new deal has included a reduced buy-out clause of 40million euros (£27m) - more than half the previous figure.

"This clause is nothing more than a symbolic gesture because if a player wants to leave a club, eventually he does," Torres added.

Torres made his debut against Leganes in 2001, when Atletico were in the Segunda Division, and scored his first goal for the club the following week against Albacete.

After helping Atletico win promotion back to the top flight in 2002, he was the top scorer in the Primera Liga in the 2003-04 season, while also becoming the youngest forward to represent Spain in the finals of a major tournament, when playing at Euro 2004.

Atletico president Enrique Cerezo said: "The story of Fernando Torres is different.

"His story, with many triumphs on a personal level, brought him his debut in the first team when he was 17 years old.

"Since that day, he hasn't stopped playing a leading role, becoming the focus in the dressing room, the captain and flying the flag for the club in the most difficult moments of its history."