Torres made a scoring start to the 2008–09 Premier League season with a 25-yard shot into the bottom right-hand corner away at Sunderland, which was the only goal in a 1–0 win on 16 August 2008.[46] He suffered a hamstring tear in a 0–0 draw against Aston Villa, which would keep him out for two to three weeks.[47] Torres made his return in a 2–1 victory against Marseille in the Champions League and went on to score two goals in the Merseyside derby against Everton on 27 September 2008 to give Liverpool a 2–0 win.[48][49] He followed this up with another two goals the following weekend against Manchester City in a 3–2 win away at the City of Manchester Stadium as Liverpool came back from a two-goal deficit.[50] The first of these was the thousandth Liverpool goal to be scored in the Premier League.[51] Torres picked up a hamstring injury during a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier, meaning he was likely to miss three games for Liverpool.[52] On 22 October 2008, Liverpool played Torres' former club Atlético in the Champions League at the Vicente Calderón Stadium, but his injury meant he missed out on the game.[53] Atlético president Enrique Cerezo had given him a VIP invitation to watch the game, but he declined this to continue his rehabilitation from injury in Merseyside.[54] He was named in the FIFPro World XI team for the 2007–08 season on 27 October 2008.[55]