Luis Suarez being linked with Manchester City another reminder of gulf between Liverpool and top clubs Steven Gerrard would have been the symbol of this grisly new world at Anfield had he moved to Stamford Bridge in 2004. He was convinced it was worth giving a new manager a chance and was rewarded with the improbable Champions League win a year later, but it was clear then an emotional connection to his boyhood club rather than logical consideration was the most decisive factor. At least Liverpool had Champions League qualification and the promise of a swift revival to assist in their desire to retain Gerrard. Brendan Rodgers - an exceptional coach who deserves years rather than months to fulfil his vision - has inherited the most challenging legacy since Bill Shankly's appointment in 1959. Nowadays, rivals clubs believe Liverpool will have no option but to consider selling their prized assets for the right price. For as long as the club is exiled from the Champions League and incapable of competing for the Premier League that is a perfectly reasonable assumption and such transfer stories as today are inevitable. Such suggestions will always be met with denial. Every supporter perceives their own club as special. Unique. When a player signs a new deal, hastily constructed Press Releases and official interviews via club media claim there is an emotional bond between the player and his adopted club and no-one could have enticed them away during those swift negotiations for a fresh deal. Such statements are considered short-term PR triumphs as some gullible supporters lap up the idea that a player from Spain or South America has formed an unbreakable attachment to the side that has just finished eighth. What these new contracts actually mean is an exceptional player has been given a well-deserved, hefty pay rise, while his employers have preserved his value in the event of Chelsea, Real Madrid or City making an offer. In the case of Torres in 2009, it simply meant he'd added a get-out clause in his deal. There is no doubt Suarez loves playing for Liverpool "at the moment" as Rodgers put it last week and if he stays beyond this season, his sense of loyalty to the Merseyside club will certainly be worthy of comparison with Gerrard in 2004 and 2005 - possibly even more so given the club is in a far less healthy state. But no alliance is unconditional. Liverpool reserve the right to sell (or in most recent cases loan) any player if his form dips to an alarming level and each player reserves the right to change their mind about that public pledge to stay if they think qualifying for the Europa League is proving rather tricky. Mancini (it must be stated City's interest appears to managerial rather than executive level at this stage) - is simply being logical by urging his new Director of Football to bid for Suarez. The Manchester City manager does not look at Anfield and see a club on the threshold of competing with City, Barcelona and Real Madrid. He does not analyse Liverpool's commercial accounts and analyse John W. Henry's persistent reminders of the importance of enforcing Financial Fair Play and think "wow, now there's a club going places." He just sees Luis Suarez, a fantastic striker who should be playing in the Champions League and harbouring genuine title hopes. He sees Luis Suarez inspiring a side languishing in the bottom half of the table. There is no surprise the Manchester City manager is keen to sign Suarez. The surprise would be if they were not. And the real surprise is if any Liverpool supporter is not seriously worried about whether this is merely the opening salvo in a pursuit that will intensify at the end of the season.