Reports of Arsenal £42m Bid for Luis Suarez Wide of the Mark

While he's returned to the Liverpool squad and is apparently set to play a part in tomorrow's friendly against Melbourne Victory, there's little settled when it comes to the future of Luis Suarez. Brendan Rodgers has discussed the need for further clarification between he and the player, which will ideally occur sooner rather than later as the Premier League season approaches. The club aren't yet fighting off too many suitors, but reports earlier in the day had Arsenal upping their original offer to £35m with £7m in add-ons for a deal totaling £42m. Only this time it's apparently not actually a thing, with Tony Barrett quashing the rumor shortly after it gained traction.

Responding to a question a few minutes ago, Barrett tweeted:

@dogrady89 No. Arsenal have not offered 42m for Luis Suarez.

— Tony Barrett (@TonyBarretTimes) July 23, 2013

I suppose that leaves it open to "BUT DOES THAT MEAN THEY BID SOMETHING ELSE LIVERPOOL ARE GOING TO BE RELEGATED IF THEY DID FSG OUT DAVID BRENT JOKE!?!?" worries, but there would be little reason to play coy or withhold information at this point. Liverpool have been firm in their stance, with Rodgers setting a defiant and consistent tone when it comes to where he sees Suarez spending his time for the coming season. First six matches on the bench, and from there it's in Liverpool red for the 2013-2014 season.

Things can change, obviously, but for now we're in the same spot we were before--Luis Suarez is a Liverpool player, the club aren't interested in selling, and under no circumstances should they sell to a club that they're hoping to be in direct competition with in the near future. They're still some distance off Arsenal in terms of consistency, but if they managed to build and grow over the coming season, the North London club have to be one of the first they catch. Selling Suarez to them would make that a damned sight more difficult, and simply should not happen.