Should He Stay or Should He Go Now...?

If you have been following all of the drama surrounding the Suarez rumors, then your stomach too is likely feeling the same sensation I get on rollercoasters. One minute it is resting comfortably in my torso where it belongs, the next minute it is being hurled against my throat followed by dropping below my knees.

If you believe the news media, which is a crap shoot, Suarez wants out. Sky Sports has a nice almost list of continuing contradictions of Suarez's quotes here. The real answer after reading all of that is that no one knows what is going to happen and how strong Liverpool's resolve to keep him will be if a bidding war breaks out. Liverpool appear though not to want to sell, releasing this statement:

"Luis Suarez is not for sale - neither Luis or his representatives have communicated these feelings directly to LFC. The club remains supportive of Luis and expect him to honour his contract. We will not be making any further comment at this stage."

It would appear is if Liverpool are quite intent on keeping him. And why not? He is the man who makes things happen on the pitch. Despite the ups and downs of his personal conduct, he is still probably one of the top 5 footballers playing right now. His magical ability to nutmeg even mermaids and unlock defenses to propel his team onwards is largely irreplaceable. It would make little sense to sell and bring in expensive, likely unproven talent. Or this could be just a ploy to drive up his price.

As was been stated by Rodgers about a week ago:

"Listen, every player has their price but there’s certainly no pressure for the club to sell him..."

Assuming Liverpool can drive his price up to £50m or more, it might be wise to consider selling. He is thrilling and breathtaking, but also a giant sore spot for a club looking to expand its fanbase and move past the recent controversies (all of which he has been at the heart of). The real thing to consider is what can you get for Suarez? You could get a Benteke and another two/three solid players to back him up. With the emergence of Sturridge (although his new injury might change this) as a man who can lead a front line, it might have just become the perfect time to part ways and double your money or more.

For the record, I'm not sold on Benteke. Young, large and largely unproven over time makes him the flavor of the month and gives me nauseating deja vu to that other really big, largely unproven "talent" we signed a little while back and finally offloaded recently.

The questions we should all be asking ourselves is not whether or not we should sell Suarez. The question we should all be asking is, at what price do we sell Suarez. In simple economical terms, at what point do we get the maximize the cost/benefit relationship? It is a nearly impossible decision that I'm glad I don't have to make.