Out: Luis Suarez (Liverpool)
Luis Suarez has just had his best season in a Liverpool shirt, scoring 30 goals in a superb campaign in which he has lit up the Premier League with his exciting displays.
However, once again his good work was undone with major controversy, as he was seen biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic during a game at Anfield, earning himself a ten-game ban and more negative press, possibly seeing him lose out on winning the PFA Player of the Year award, which went to Tottenham’s Gareth Bale.
Suarez feels victimised in England, and is desperate to leave the country and its press. Liverpool are desperate to keep their best player as they look to build a promising new team under Brendan Rodgers, but although Suarez is not seeking an escape from Anfield, his desire to get away from the English media has seen him call for a move abroad, with Spanish giants Real Madrid supposedly interested.
There’s no doubt Suarez would be a superb signing for the Bernabeu club, as he could go on to become one of the best players in the world if he cleans up his act. It would be a big blow for Liverpool to lose him just as he approaches his peak, but it would be some consolation that he would bring in around £50million as he becomes Real’s latest ‘galactico’ signing, giving Rodgers plenty to work with as he seeks to replace the Uruguayan.
In: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
One player that has been linked as a possible replacement for Suarez is Porto star Jackson Martinez. The Colombian has had an excellent first season with the club, scoring 34 goals in 39 games. This kind of goals-to-games ratio would make Suarez quickly forgotten if he could replicate it in England, and at 26 he still has time to develop into an even better player than he already is.
Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund have also been linked with this prolific forward, and he certainly wouldn’t come cheap after his achievements this year, commanding close to £33million. Dortmund are said to be considering him as a replacement for Lewandowski, though they may not have the financial power that Liverpool will have once they make the lucrative £50million sale of Suarez.
Although Rodgers will probably not want to spend too much of his new transfer fund on one player, a quality striker is of utmost importance for the Reds as they look to break into the top four next season, especially considering how reliant they were on Suarez for goals this term, and Martinez looks like he would be well worth spending the money on.