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Brendan Rodgers demands Luis Suarez apology

By Liam Power, Reporter | 10 August 2013

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers insists Luis Suarez must apologise to his teammates and the club before being considered for a return to full training.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has declared that Luis Suarez must apologise to his teammates and the club before being considered for a return to his plans.

Suarez has trained alone at Liverpool's Melwood training ground for the past three days after going public with his desire to leave the Reds for Arsenal earlier this week.

Rodgers told reporters in a post-match press conference: "I think initially there will be a recognition that there will be an apology to his teammates and the club. Then once that commitment is there then we will welcome him back with open arms.

"Luis Suarez, from the day I've walked in here, has fought tirelessly for the club. So when I've seen him and how he's been over a period of time, I know it's not the Luis Suarez that I know. I have to protect the great supporters of this club and the players because they deserve more than that. He's spent some days working on his own. The group has been separate to that and working very hard. I think when he comes back from his international trip, we'll assess it from there.

"There's been lots of speculation about all these clubs. I was made aware at the end of last season that we were going to have a number of clubs come in for him. We've had one so far, and that's been it. Our intention is to keep Luis Suarez, so the story's the same really."

Liverpool finished their pre-season preparations with a friendly against Celtic earlier today, losing 1-0 to the Scottish champions in Dublin.