After weeks of speculation, and a certain amount of controversy. Luis Suarez appears to finally be on his way out of Liverpool, heading to sunny Spain in the process. Both Real Madrid and Barcelona have been linked with the striker since the season has ended, but it appears the latter has won the race for Suarez.
Barcelona officials travelled to London on Wednesday, to meet with Liverpool owner John W. Henry. It was expected that Liverpool wouldn't part with Suarez for anything less than £80m, reportedly his release clause. However, according to several Spanish media sources, Suarez is on his way to Barcelona for £63m (€79m). The one thing the two clubs are yet to agree on yet though, is how this money will be paid. Liverpool would rather a chuck of the payment straight away - so they can look to replace their star striker. But Barça would prefer to pay in a number of installments.
At 27 years old, £63m is a fair old investment from Barça. But Suarez's outstanding quality cannot be denied. The Uruguayan forward shone brightly at this Summer's World Cup. Well, that was until he bit Georgio Chiellini and received a four-month complete ban from football. The lengthy ban he received appears to have reduced the fee Liverpool originally expected for Suarez.
Official details from the transfer have yet to be announced. But a number of sources have confirmed that Alexis Sanchez will definitely not be part of this deal. It is rumoured that Liverpool are interested in signing Sanchez, but any deal for the Chilean forward will be completed separately.
It is expected that Suarez will sign a five-year-deal with the La Liga runners-up. It was originally reported that Suarez would earn around £160,000-a-week at Barça (£8.3m per year). This would mean that the striker would be taking a pay-cut to swap England for Spain. With Suarez earning around £10m per year at Liverpool. This would mean he would be earning less than only Messi, Neymar and Iniesta at the Catalan giants.
While there is no official word on Suarez from either club, but with personal terms and the fee reportedly agreed, One can only think a deal is just around the corner...