Torres wins Golden Boot award

Spain striker Fernando Torres has won the Euro 2012 Golden Boot award.

The 28-year-old scored three goals, with his third coming in the 4-0 win over Italy in Sunday’s final.

Torres’ other strikes both came during the 4-0 group stage win against the Republic of Ireland.

Six strikers scored three goals at Euro 2012, but Chelsea striker Torres took the award by virtue of having provided one assist and his goals coming in just 189 minutes of playing time.

The decisive assist that lifted Torres to Golden Boot winner came in the 88th minute against Italy as he squared a ball for substitute Juan Mata to score.

The other players to finish on three goals were Italy’s Mario Balotelli, Alan Dzagoev of Russia, Germany’s Mario Gomez, Croatia’s Mario Mandzukic and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo.

Torres’ goal against Italy also made him the first player to score in two European Championship finals.

His end of season success helped cap a bittersweet year for the former Liverpool forward.

Torres largely endured a difficult season in the Premier League, failing to find the net between October and March and finishing the domestic campaign with just eight Premier League goals in 32 appearances.

However, he played an important role in helping Chelsea win the Champions League by scoring in the semi-final against Barcelona.