Chelsea v Liverpool: Suarez to prove a bridge too far for Mourinho

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Suarez could replace Balotelli if Liverpool miss top four

"There is virtually no chance of tempting Suarez away before the deadline, though even Steven Gerrard has recently alluded that the striker deserves Champions League football."

With the news of Mario Balotelli's departure back to Italy, Christian Crowther takes a look at who the champions could get in as a late replacement...

The news of Mario Balotelli's imminent arrival at AC Milan has created a sense of national mourning from English football fans and media alike.

But while others are left contemplating a Balotelli-less future with heavy hearts, Mario's surrogate father, Roberto Mancini, will be scanning the transfer landscape for another son to adopt.

If reports are to be believed, Manchester City's near-bottomless coffers will be boosted to the tune of around £20 million from the sale of the eccentric striker.

However, time is clearly ticking for them to flex their financial muscle and replace Balotelli during this window. If Mancini has been lining someone up all along then the Italian has done an exceptional job to keep it on the down low.

Of course the calibre of replacements would have to be extremely high and the two names which have been linked the heaviest certainly fit into that bracket.

However, to prise either Edinson Cavani or Radamel Falcao away from their clubs at this stage may prove a difficult task in the little time remaining in the window.

Napoli's top scorer Cavani is involved in a title push in Italy, just three points behind Juventus at present and rated at 4.67/2 for the scudetto, so a move now would be highly unlikely.

Likewise, Falcao's team Atletico have the chance of making history by finishing above city rivals Real for the first time since 1995/96 and, at the very least, look like making the Champions League for the first time since 2009/10.

As well as the race against time, Man City do not have the lure of Champions League football to attract these big players this season either, making a summer transfer by far the most likely scenario.

Another player on the radar and much closer to home is Liverpool's Luis Suarez. Again, there is virtually no chance of tempting the Uruguayan away before the deadline, though even Steven Gerrard has recently alluded that the striker deserves Champions League football.

At this point, Liverpool look big outsiders to make the top-four spots - available at around 9.417/2 - before their trip to the Emirates on Wednesday night.

If the Reds fail to make it, a Suarez move could be a real possibility.

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Premier League: Boot is on right foot for Suarez and Liverpool

"Brendan Rodgers’ odd-ball training-ground insight sounded more Mike Bassett than Messianic."

Romilly Evans looks at the virtuoso efforts of Luis Suarez, as he pursues Liverpool's redemption and the Golden Boot

Liverpool's worst start to a top-flight campaign since 1962 has picked up. It had to. And now, after Saturday's 3-0 romp at home to Wigan, it's their slowest start to a season in only 20 years. Nevertheless, they remain inside the bottom half of the table and are going nowhere. Which might lead fans to fear that Luis Suarez might be going somewhere in the forthcoming January transfer window. The Uruguayan has been the one ray of light beaming through the Reds' dark days and he again proved the point at the weekend with two well-taken goals to lift his league tally for the season to 10.

Those net gains, coupled to the manner in which most were scored, has already caught the attention of Roberto Mancini, who earlier in the week made Suarez his top target for when the Premier League Exchange opens up again after Christmas. The Man City manager, of course, is one of the few who doesn't wait for the January sales with a view to purchasing the league's bargains and best-kept secrets. Instead, Mancini can afford to pursue the glaringly obvious prized possessions of other clubs, no matter what the cost. However, even this spoilt child may not secure all that he craves.

Already knocked back in his pursuit of Falcao from Atletico Madrid, Mancini is facing a similar problem with the Liverpool lynchpin, ostensibly conceding defeat in his chase only days after citing Suarez as the object of his affections. His problem is two-fold. Firstly, having wisely put pen to paper on Suarez's new contract, the Reds are in a strong position to ward off suitors, including the Etihad variety, with exorbitant price tags. If they managed to flog Fernando Torres to Chelsea for a club-record fee of 50m, what price Suarez?

City have already subscribed to the new Financial Fair Play regulations, so even their purse strings may no longer have the elasticity to ensnare the South American. Secondly, though, Suarez himself genuinely appears to have embraced the Merseyside mythology which surrounds Liverpool. "I love this club," he enthused. "I am happy here, my family is happy here. I have fantastic team-mates, a manager from whom I'm learning and although we haven't begun the year as we'd have wanted, things are turning. I want to stay for many years."

Cynics might counter that Suarez sounds like an alcoholic about to fall off the wagon, but it seems he is intoxicated by another powerful agent: the unswerving belief of his manager and his peers. Anyone who saw the Liverpool FC which tailed Brendan Rodgers after his appointment will have doubtless concluded that it was a misjudged PR initiative from the club's American owners to export their "product" stateside. Rodgers' odd-ball interviews and training-ground insight sounded more Mike Bassett than Messianic. Yet, before these new clothes stripped him of all his dignity, Rodgers pulled off a masterstroke worthy of any successful emperor. He aligned his own fate with that of his most talented general, making him an untouchable field marshal. "Luis is our Lionel Messi," raved Rodgers. "He plays to false-nine role just as well, moving freely, forcing others to get in behind him. He's world-class."

The plaudits keep on coming. Steven Gerrard has recently identified Suarez as the best striker with whom he has ever played. Which puts the Uruguayan ahead of Torres, Michael Owen and God himself (Robbie Fowler). That's no faint praise and Gerrard is clearly relieved to trade his one-man-band badge to a grateful recipient. Naturally, no one player can carry a side's aspirations on their back. Gerrard gave it a good, single-handed shot in the 2005 Champions League, but the Premier League is a different matter. Still, for now, Suarez is repaying his comrades' faith in spades.

No longer prone to profligacy, Suarez's solitary Achilles heel is his discipline. If he can avoid the rash challenges, he should certainly be favourite for this year's Golden Boot, for which he is currently available at an attractive 4.216/5 to back. Robin van Persie may head this market, but the flying Dutchman is not his team's lone conduit to goal, while his frame has proved fragile in the past. Better to leave it instead to the main man on the Mersey.

Top Goalscorer may be the only individual honour a Liverpool player receives this term, but Suarez is also offering The Kop something more ethereal: the promise of a better tomorrow. So while Rogers' tactical revolution continues, at least there's plenty of joy to be found in their struggle.

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