The Reds chief confirms that a bid from Arsenal just slightly over the Uruguayan forward’s release clause was rejected during last summer’s tense transfer negotiations

Liverpool owner John W Henry has confirmed that Luis Suarez did have a €49 million release clause in his old contract but revealed that the club refused to sell the striker to Arsenal because “contracts don’t seem to mean a lot in England”.

Arsene Wenger’s side submitted a €49m-plus-€1 bid in an attempt activate the Uruguay international’s clause but the Reds claimed that the player only needed to be informed of offers over €49 and were not obliged to sell.

Liverpool maintained their no-sale stance regarding Suarez throughout the summer transfer window and the forward signed a new long-term deal with the club in December.

“Luis Suarez is the top scorer in the English Premier League, which is arguably the top soccer league in the world,” Henry is reported to have said at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.

“He had a buyout clause of £40m. Arsenal, one of our prime rivals – this year we’re tied for second – we’re actually second because of goal difference – offered £40m plus £1.

“What we’ve found is that contracts don’t seem to mean a lot in England – actually, in world football.

“It doesn’t matter how long a player’s contract is, he can decide he’s leaving.

“We sold a player, Fernando Torres, for £50m, that we did not want to sell – we were forced to. Since apparently these contracts don’t seem to hold, we took the position that we’re just not selling.

“It’s been great for Luis, it’s been great for us.”