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• Liverpool keen on talks before 11 February fixture
• Uruguayan could return after ban at Old Trafford

Liverpool officials are to request top-level talks with their Manchester United counterparts, in an attempt to defuse tensions before the two clubs meet at Old Trafford on 11 February. That match is likely to be Luis Suárez’s first away from Anfield after his eight-match ban for racially abusing the United defender Patrice Evra.

Kenny Dalglish has no reservations about picking Suárez to start against United, despite his concern over the treatment the Uruguay international may receive from opposition supporters once his suspension has been served. Beyond matters on the pitch, however, there is a realisation at Anfield that the potential for trouble will be greater than usual when the north-west rivals meet, given the fallout from the Suárez affair and therefore a need to respond.

Relations between the clubs, like those between Liverpool and the Football Association, have suffered badly since the 1-1 draw at Anfield on 15 October. Liverpool’s staunch defence of a player who has admitted using the Spanish word negro once during his row with Evra, but was found guilty of using it or negros seven times by an independent regulatory commission, has been viewed by many as the root cause. Liverpool have cast doubt on Evra’s integrity and are adamant that Suárez has been punished for a cultural misunderstanding and his honesty in admitting to using the word when first presented with Evra’s accusation, immediately after the match in October.

Nevertheless, and having accepted Suárez’s ban, Liverpool accept a responsibility to reduce potential flashpoints at Old Trafford next month and intend to contact United on the issue. Liverpool officials are exploring what actions can be taken before the game and there has been no approach to United yet. Talks may even take place at ownership level, where Liverpool’s principal owner, John W Henry, and chairman, Tom Werner, have been closely involved in the club’s stance throughout the affair. The Premier League is prepared to mediate, if called upon. United are open to the prospect of working with Liverpool and will assess any proposals that are made.

Liverpool will also use Suárez’s suspension period to discuss with the FA not only the procedures that led to the striker’s eight-match ban, which the Anfield club believe to be deeply flawed, but measures that can be taken to aid the 24-year-old’s return to the game. The independent regulatory commission and Evra both accepted that Suarez is not a racist and Liverpool believe sanctions should be brought against clubs whose supporters brand him as such.

Their priority with the FA, however, the integrity of which Liverpool have also questioned, is to instigate changes to a system that currently sees the commission members appointed by the FA and given the power to find a player guilty of racist abuse on the balance of probability.

Liverpool’s handling of the entire episode has continued to attract fierce criticism and Piara Powar, the executive director of European football’s anti-discrimination body, Fare, believes the FA should charge the club with bringing the game into disrepute. He said Dalglish had been “undignified” in his vehement support of Suárez and that Liverpool’s reaction had damaged their image across the world.

“This is a lack of respect for the governing body by Liverpool and the FA should charge Liverpool FC and Kenny Dalglish,” Powar said. “I think the FA should come back now and be very clear that Liverpool could be construed to have brought the game into disrepute by the way in which they have consistently undermined the judgment and by Kenny Dalglish’s comments. Liverpool have been too keen to support their man and in doing so have whipped up a sense of paranoia amongst their fans. This is not the Liverpool FC that we have applauded in the past for their support for a whole range of issues. The responses from Kenny Dalglish have been undignified; the way in which they have dealt with the whole matter has been unprofessional. For the club to so aggressively militate against what looks to most people a considered judgment from the FA leads to a potential for anarchy.”

The FA is not expected to charge Liverpool but Powar said the club had suffered for its hardline stance on Suárez. He added: “They have damaged their brand, no question. There is no question that Liverpool do have a global appeal, but I have emails from colleagues in Africa asking me what the hell is going on. I think people will be watching this and I believe there is no question that their plans for global expansion will have been damaged by this. That’s not to say they cannot come back from this but it has done them a lot of damage and they have not conducted themselves in a very palatable way.”

Dalglish, who with Manchester City is interested in Birmingham City’s 17-year-old midfielder Nathan Redmond, said Friday’s FA Cup third-round tie at home to Oldham Athletic offers welcome respite after a troubled week for the club. The Liverpool manager said: “To get back on the pitch after the week we’ve had on and off it is the best thing we can do. It’ll be a great time too for our people to show support for one another – for the players to show their gratitude towards the fans for the support they’ve given us recently, and also vice versa.”

LiverpoolLuis SuárezManchester UnitedAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk

• Coach says report linking striker with transfer is ‘a lie’
• Liverpool and Aston Villa also linked with January bids

The Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has dismissed Spanish media reports linking David Villa with a move away from the club in the January transfer window.

The sports newspaper Marca reported that the striker is preparing to move on from Barca just 19 months into the four-year deal agreed following his €40m transfer from Valencia.

The speculation over the Spain international’s future appears to have arisen from Guardiola’s decision to omit the forward from his starting line-up for Saturday’s 3-1 victory in the Clasico against Real Madrid.

Marca said Villa has been made available for transfer and had already been touted to “the great English clubs, mainly Chelsea, Liverpool and Aston Villa”, but Guardiola insists the speculation is nonsense.

Speaking to reporters in Japan ahead of Barcelona’s Fifa Club World Cup game against Al-Sadd, Guardiola said: “Marca lie. I have not spoken to David after the last match in Madrid, but all of the players are in my plans.

“I am the one who comes up with 25 different line-ups during the season because I feel that is the best thing to do. Most of the players that are here now will continue for the rest of this season and the next.”

Villa has scored five times in 15 league appearances this season, following his 18 goals in 34 games as Barca won the Primera Division title last season. He has made 75 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 32 goals.

David VillaBarcelonaChelseaTransfer windowAston VillaLiverpoolguardian.co.uk

• Liverpool midfielder wants permanent move back to Serie A
• ‘The club must think about it. It’s a difficult deal’ – agent

The Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani has a 50% chance of joining Fiorentina, according to his agent.

Reports suggested a deal to move to the Serie A club had fallen through as the 27-year-old wanted a permanent move as opposed to another loan spell like the one he had with Juventus last season.

“As Alberto doesn’t yet fall in the plans of Liverpool, we want to find a solution so that next year the current situation will not recur,” Aquilani’s agent, Franco Zavaglia, told Sportitalia. “The player wants to come to Italy on a permanent transfer.

“I met [Fiorentina's sporting director, Pantaleo] Corvino, and the club must think about it. It’s a difficult deal but let’s see.

“There is a 50% chance that my client will transfer to Florence. Last year, in August, there was ‘magic’ [Aquilani's loan deal to Juventus], let’s see if this year will be the same. There is still time.”

FiorentinaLiverpoolTransfer windowguardian.co.uk