London: Barcelona officials were due to meet their Liverpool counterparts in London on Wednesday to open negotiations on a possible deal for disgraced Anfield striker Luis Suarez, according to British media reports.
Barcelona appear to be leading the race among clubs linked with the 27-year-old Uruguayan, who was expelled from the World Cup and handed a nine-match competitive international ban as well as a four-month sanction from any soccer activity for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini in a Group D match.
A meeting between the Merseyside club officials and a delegation led by Raul Sanllehi, Barcelona’s director of football management, was scheduled to discuss the future of last season’s Premier League top scorer, the reports said.
In order to prise Suarez away from Liverpool, the Spanish club will either need to meet the release clause, reportedly around £70-80 million ($118-$134 million), in his revised contract or possibly offer a player-plus-cash deal.
Should the Merseysiders opt for the latter agreement, Barcelona’s Chilean striker Alexis Sanchez — a Liverpool target in the past — appears to be the Anfield side’s preferred choice as Suarez’s replacement.
After initially denying that he bitten Chiellini in Uruguay’s 1-0 win in Natal on June 24, Suarez issued a carefully worded statement on Monday, admitting his offence and vowing there would be no repeat.
Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta stoked rumours of a possible move for Suarez to the Catalan club on Tuesday by praising him for his ‘humility’ in admitting his mistake.
“Suarez has had the character and the humility to acknowledge his mistake. That is important,” Zubizarreta told a news conference on Tuesday.
“That’s the starting point for a person’s recovery process.”
Barca’s new coach Luis Enrique is overhauling the squad after a disappointing season in which they narrowly failed to defend their Spanish league title.
Zubizarreta was speaking at a news conference on Tuesday to present Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic, whom the Catalan club has bought from Sevilla on a five-year contract.
Suarez was the top scorer in England’s Premier League last season with 31 goals.
Zubizarreta declined to comment on the prospect of the club signing him, however.
“Luis Suarez is an excellent player and everyone knows it. But everyone also knows that he is a Liverpool player.”
In the run-up to the tournament in Brazil, Suarez scored 11 goals in 16 qualifying matches to help Uruguay secure a berth at the finals, while at Liverpool, his 31 league goals was the catalyst for the club’s surprising second-place finish.
Suarez also finished the season with a share of the European Golden Boot and was named Footballer of the Year by the Professional Footballers’ Association and the Football Writers’ Association.
However, his life in England has not been without controversy since he arrived from Ajax in January 2011.
He has served lengthy bans twice during his stay at Anfield, once for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra and again for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic in 2013.
Meanwhile, new recruit Rakitic says he has joined Barcelona “to take a step forward” in his career after helping Sevilla win the Europa League last season.
Rakitic said after signing a five-year deal on Tuesday that “the title last year with Sevilla opened a door for me and I hope that this is only the first step.”
Rakitic agreed to join Barcelona last month on his return from the World Cup.
The 26-year-old Croat will help fill the playmaking void left by Cesc Fabregas after his transfer to Chelsea.
He says he has chosen the number 4 jersey to follow in the footsteps of former Barcelona player and coach Pep Guardiola.
Barcelona says Sevilla asked for the financial details of the transfer not to be released.
