Bren: £40m is not even close to Suarezs
LIVERPOOL boss Rodgers says his striker is worth far above Arsenals bid and the Uruguayan is training as per usual
LUIS SUAREZ pulled on a Liverpool shirt again yesterday as Kop boss Brendan Rodgers told Arsenal to put up or shut up.
Suarez, who came on as a sub in the Reds 2-0 win over Melbourne Victory yesterday, wants out of Anfield in his quest for Champions League football.
The Gunners have already had two firm offers for the controversial striker knocked back.
And Liverpool were stunned at the cheek of Tuesdays most recent offer, when a £40,000,001 bid was clearly designed to test a release clause in Suarezs contract.
Kop chiefs, though, insist that amount merely forces them to inform the player, NOT sell him.
Rodgers has already stated he values Suarez, 26, in the same bracket as fellow Uruguayan hitman Edinson Cavani, who banked Napoli £55m when they sold him to Paris Saint-Germain.
The Northern Irishman is realistic, though, and knows everyone has a price. But unless Arsenal are prepared to get real, he is adamant they are wasting their time.
Rodgers insisted: If Arsenal want the player, then they have to produce the value for the player.
There was an offer a few weeks ago of £35m and two weeks later it is now £40m and £1 I dont think it is anywhere near the value of what he is worth.
But it is twofold, really. A player may want to go but then somebody has to pay the value or worth of that player.
Rodgers has already held talks with Suarez and told him of the situation.
Further discussions will go on over the coming days and weeks.
One cheeky Spanish website tried to claim the South American was being shunned by his team-mates, as team-mate Jon Flanagan tweeted a picture of them playing table tennis in the hotel with Suarez apparently sitting on his own at a computer.
In reality, he was playing a racing game and team-mate Sebastian Coates was just out of shot.
And Kop insiders have been at pains to point out it has been business as usual for the player.
Rodgers is equally certain the speculation will not affect his prize assets displays, just as he is convinced there is no grey area over the clause.
He added: There is no change for me or Luis. He is a paid player at Liverpool, so he just needs to get on with getting fit and getting worked.
Thats how it is. Until somebody tells me something different, that is what all my concentration will be on. There will be no games played at Liverpool.
Luis is part of the group and he knows the standard you have to meet at this club, on and off the field.
After the bid came in Luis was OK. He said he was OK to go on to the pitch and his focus was fine.
It may be a distraction but players are paid enough money now to produce for their clubs and he just has to keep his professionalism, which he has done.
Yesterdays appearance for the final 18 minutes of a workmanlike win over Victory was Suarezs first in a Kop shirt since biting Chelseas Branislav Ivanovic in April.
There was certainly no hangover from the Liverpool supporters expats, locals or Scousers either, despite the South Americans desires to leave, in a staggering MCG crowd of 95,446.
And while his body language has been better, do not forget it was his first competitive action after a three-week break, a 14-hour flight and only three training sessions.
Even then he managed a typical flash of brilliance, spinning into space on the byline before prodding over a cross that Iago Aspas walked in with the final touch of the game.
The opener was even better, with skipper Steven Gerrard stepping over the ball to give Joe Allen the chance to run wide and drill in a cross.
In typical fashion, it was Gerrard who powered into the box before sliding the ball home.
That aside, the biggest cheers came when pictures of Suarez on the bench were flashed up on the big screen and they were even baying for his introduction after an hour or so.
While Suarez was not exactly dancing around at setting up that late second, he was waving plenty to the fans on the Reds lap around one of sports most iconic venues.
He was one of the last to head down the tunnel, long after Gerrard had high-fived his way down with typical humility to the fans, some of whom had jetted thousands of miles across the country for the friendly.
Now the roadshow moves on to Bangkok and heavy rain and lightning over the next few days if the forecasts are correct.
Liverpool will be praying those are the only thunderstorms they have to deal with.
LIVERPOOL (starting line-up): Jones, Johnson, Skrtel, Wisdom, Enrique, Henderson, Gerrard, Allen, Ibe, Borini, Sterling.
