suarez
Luis Suarez is trying to force his way off of Liverpool. Reuters

Luis Suarez claims he is still hopeful of a “friendly” resolution with Liverpool over his transfer saga, despite being told by manager Brendan Rodgers that he has disrespected the club and being forced to train with the reserves. As Arsenal look to pry him away from Anfield, the Uruguayan, in interviews with The Guardian and Daily Telegraph earlier this week, accused Liverpool of breaking a promise and a clause in his contract that he could leave in pursuit of Champions League competition.

Despite Arsenal’s bid of £40,000,001, it appears that the much-discussed clause does not require Liverpool to sell. Yet, Suarez is refusing to back down, although he wants the situation to be resolved amicably.

"I'm still defending the Liverpool shirt and I will do so until the last minute," Suarez said, according to Spanish sports daily Marca. "My aim is to reach an agreement with the club in a friendly manner and I hope the clause we agreed a year ago is fulfilled. Up to now, it hasn't been. It's not that I want to or am desperate to leave, but I like things to be clear and a year ago I made my position to the club clear."

Liverpool have insisted that they will not countenance selling the 26-year-old unless their valuation of in excess of £50 million is met. The Daily Star believes that Arsenal are now prepared to offer £51 million to land Suarez and obliterate their previous transfer record of just £15 million.

While the arrival of Suarez would be a huge boost, Arsenal’s need to strengthen other areas of the squad remains apparent. Recruiting a defensive midfielder could well be on Arsene Wenger’s agenda. Luiz Gustavo has been linked with the Gunners, with Bayern Munich revealing that they would consider offers for the Brazil international.

Fellow-Bundesliga side Wolfsburg appeared to be frontrunners for his signature, but Talksport claims that the 26-year-old is resisting the transfer and instead wants to move to the Premier League. Chelsea have also been linked.

It has also been thought that Wenger is keen to bring in an established goalkeeper after Wojciech Szczesny’s problems last season. Queens Park Rangers’ Julio Cesar has long appeared a likely option, with the Brazil No. 1 set to move on following his club’s relegation. He has most recently been linked with Fiorentina, although the Seria A side have dismissed such speculation. The 33-year-old’s agent has said that the transfer is a possibility, however his comments suggest that the player’s huge contract at QPR could be a barrier to any deal.

"I never made direct contact with Fiorentina, but I did send a close friend to speak to the Viola. For now there is no news," Josias Cardoso told Radio Blu. "QPR would have no problem letting him go to Fiorentina or to any other club, but if the €3.2 million don’t arrive then it’s difficult to close the deal. The move can be made only if we are offered a four-year contract. "He has a contract with QPR until 2016, so it has to match that date,” he added. “The length of the contract could compensate for a difference in wages, but if it expired earlier than 2016 then it would be pointless. Julio Cesar likes Fiorentina, so they could be the right team for him to target a World Cup spot."

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