Liverpool misfit Luis Suarez closer to exit as Barcelona weigh up Alexis Sanchez swap
Posted Monday, June 30, 2014 by Dailystar.co.uk
BARCELONA believe they are closing in on a deal for Luis Suarez.
ON THE MOVE: Suarez looks to be on his way to Barcelona
And reports in Spain claim the controversial Liverpool striker has already agreed a £160,000-a-week contract with the Catalan giants.
They are said to be pushing ahead with their plans to sign Suarez, even to the extent of inserting a 'bite' clause in the proposed deal.
That would impose severe financial penalties on the Uruguayan if he were to commit a similar offence to the one that saw him banned from all football-related activity until the end of October for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini.
Barcelona are ready to try to open negotiations with Liverpool, although their opening offer will be just £25m for the 27-year-old who has already served two lengthy suspensions for similar offences.
They are said to have no intention of paying anywhere near the £40m plus £1 offer Arsenal submitted for the player last summer.
The Suarez saga looks sure to rumble on this summer with legal challenges set to be made over the FIFA-imposed ban, which also rules him out of nine competitive internationals.
Boss Brendan Rodgers and the Anfield hierarchy will be unimpressed by Barca's antics.
But with Suarez making it clear he wants out, they face having talk to the Spaniards - although they are determined not to be forced into a cut-price deal for a hugely talented player they have supported through a series of controversies.
SWAP DEAL: A possible deal could involve Alexis Sanchez going to Anfield
One possible solution could be a swap deal involving Chilean striker Alexis Sanchez, who knows the arrival of Suarez could push him even further down the pecking order, with Neymar and Lionel Messi already the star men at the Nou Camp.
Uruguay crashed out of the World Cup at the last 16 stage on Saturday with the Suarez row all but overshadowing their 2-0 defeat by Colombia.
After the game skipper Diego Lugano said Suarez's punishment was barbaric.
He also insisted Suarez has been treated worse than a criminal and had his human rights breached.
The former West Brom defender, who is currently without a club, said: "It's a breach of human rights that a player cannot go into a stadium where there are 80,000 people or into a hotel with his team-mates, that he cannot work for four months.
"He has committed a crime, but this is barbarity. Not even a criminal would receive this penalty.
"Luis is irreplaceable. Against Colombia we weren't able to replace the skills he has.
"Losing him is much worse than Brazil losing Neymar or Argentina losing (Lionel) Messi."
But PSG striker Edinson Cavani claimed Uruguay had put the Suarez situation out of their minds, despite hanging his shirt up in the dressing-room.
"From the moment we knew about the sanction, we only thought about Colombia," he said.
"We knew it was a tough penalty, but we separated ourselves from it and concentrated on our players."
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