Luis Suarez HAD £40million release clause - but we refused to sell, says Liverpool owner John W Henry

The Uruguayan's summer dalliances with Arsenal ended with the Reds quite simply saying no - despite what his contract said

Liverpool owner John W Henry has claimed that star striker Luis Suarez DID have a £40million release clause in his contract when Arsenal came calling last summer - but that the club simply refused to sell.

The Uruguayan forward, who has starred in the Reds' title challenge this season, became embroiled in a transfer dispute at Anfield last summer over a possible move to the Gunners.

The north London club were tipped off that Suarez had a £40million clause in his deal and subsequently bid £40million plus £1 in a bid to take him to the Emirates Stadium.

However, Arsenal and Suarez's agent, Pere Guardiola, eventually backed down when Liverpool insisted they didn't have to sell - but that isn't exactly correct, according to the Reds owner.

"Luis Suarez is the top scorer in the English Premier League, which is arguably the top soccer league in the world," said Henry, speaking at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.

"He had a buyout clause of £40million. 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 [Fenway Sports Group] 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 £50million, 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."