It has been widely reported that Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers and managing director Ian Ayre held talks with Luis Suarez’s agent, Pere Guardiola, on Monday night.
Apparently, the meeting was amicable and had been planned before Arsenal put in a cheeky £30 million bid for the Uruguayan’s services.
Guardiola is said to have reiterated Suarez’s desire to play in the Uefa Champions League sooner rather than later, but he is also said to have stopped short of officially submitting a transfer request on the player’s behalf.
Amid reported interest in Suarez’s services from teams like Real Madrid and Chelsea, Liverpool are adamant that Suarez is not for sale.
If he wants to leave they say, he must come and tell them.
According to his contract, Liverpool must allow Suarez to talk to any team that offers £40 million for him, but even then, they are not required to sell unless they agree to the fee.
The Reds are rightly determined to bank as much money as possible for Suarez if in fact that they are forced into selling him, and thus far no adequate bids have been submitted.
Under the guidance of agent Guardiola, Suarez inked a long-term contract extension with Liverpool only last season, intimating that he was happy to stay on Merseyside to spearhead the club’s push for the Champions League.
There appears to be the reluctant understanding at Anfield that if Real in particular make a mega money bid for Suarez, they should probably let him go.
But considering the striker’s assertion that the English media has made his stay untenable, a sale to the likes of Chelsea at any price seems impossible.
Suarez is currently on holiday in South America after his exploits for Uruguay at the Confederations Cup, and has been surpisingly silent after his repeated flirtations with Los Blancos in Brazil.
He is expected back at Liverpool for pre-season training towards the end of July. By that time the Reds will have hoped to have either a further season's commitment from the prolific forward, or a hefty transfer fee to spend on his replacement.
