Masch is not “part of our plans for this season.”

Barcelona’s Director of Sport Andoni Zubizarreta has told Spanish newspaper Sport that Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano is not a transfer target for the Catalan club.  He said that he does not consider him:

“part of our plans for this season. There’s nothing in it.”

Reds boss Roy Hodgson started the Argentinean captain against Arsenal at Anfield yesterday and confirmed after the match that they have yet to receive a formal offer for the player:

“It’s only speculation from the mass media, if I am brutally honest. We’ve had no offer for Javier Mascherano. He is playing at Liverpool and how many clubs could he move to better or on the same level? As yet, we have not received any offers from anyone. There are two weeks to go (in the transfer window) and you never know. Some of these clubs, for reasons best known to themselves, like to come in with offers on August 28 or 29. The fact is, we want to keep him here and will keep him here unless an offer comes along which is correct. By that I mean, is in keeping with his value and one we think would be wrong for us to turn down because we have said if that offer comes in we will accept it.”