Liverpool target Spain star Villa

Liverpool target Spain star Villa

Villa missed out on the Euro 2008 final through injury

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez admits David Villa is on his list of potential striker recruits after Peter Crouch's impending departure to Portsmouth.

Villa, 26, was one of the stars of Euro 2008, scoring four times as Spain won their first major trophy in 44 years.

"We have Torres, Voronin, Kuyt, Babel and Steven Gerrard, who can play as a second striker," Benitez said. "But we will try to bring in another option.

"Villa we know all about. He is on our list. But maybe it will be difficult."

Fernando Torres scored 33 goals in a spectacular first season at Anfield, but the other strikers only managed a combined total of 17 goals to undermine any hopes of launching a sustained Premier League title challenge.

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Villa scored 18 league goals for Valencia last season and was the top scorer at Euro 2008, notably scoring a hat-trick against Russia in a Group D match.

And he also proved he could form an effective partnership with Torres, despite pre- tournament concerns that Spanish coach Luis Aragones would be forced to leave one out in order to select a balanced team.