The Uruguayan striker has been linked with several of Europe’s biggest clubs following a prolific campaign, but insists he believes his immediate future lies at Anfield

Luis Suarez has cooled speculation linking him with a summer exit by revealing he is confident he will be at Liverpool next season.

Suarez has enjoyed a sensational second full season in England, notching 29 goals in all competitions even as Brendan Rodgers’ side have failed to challenge for a top-four place.

This dazzling form has attracted interest from Europe’s elite, and in a recent interview in his homeland, the Uruguayan was quoted as saying he would “welcome” approaches from Champions League clubs.

But the 26-year-old has now moved to distance himself from such speculation, insisting he believes his immediate future lies at Anfield.

“Sometimes the club can decide they don’t want you, though you want to stay. Or a player could say he wanted to leave and still end up staying,” Suarez told The Sunday Times.

“In football things never turn out the way you plan them. The only thing I have in my head is I’m here and have a contract. I think I’ll be here next season, yes.

“What I said [in Uruguay] was I’m very happy here, so is my family, which for me is very important. I’m at a club any footballer would want to be playing at, who share my goal of playing in the Champions League.

“If it’s not this year then it will be the next. I want to see out my contract — but also in football you never quite know what’s ahead.”

Suarez’s superb performances have established him as one of the front-runners for the PFA Player of the Year award, along with the likes of Gareth Bale, Juan Mata and Robin van Persie.

But the Uruguayan believes his controversial image will hinder his chances of winning the coveted award.

“Everybody’s got their own opinion about players. And everybody’s got their own way of doing things on the field,” he added.

“I understand defenders probably aren’t going to vote for me because I’ve got my particular style, which can be considered a bit niggly.

“The way I am and the way I carry myself is all part of how I play — almost to divert defenders’ attention, to put them off.”

Suarez cast his own vote in the direction of Bale, and he is full of praise for the Welshman’s abilities.

“I love watching him, his change of pace, his spectacular goals, his strength of shot,” he continued.

“He even scores with his head. He’s a totally all-round player and I think that it’s a real shame for football he’s been out these last few weeks.”

Chelsea’s Spanish striker returns to Anfield on Sunday hoping to boost the Blues’ quest for a top-four finish, but acknowledges a debt of gratitude to the Reds he left behind

While the return of Rafa Benitez to Anfield on Sunday with Chelsea has made headlines, Fernando Torres may receive a somewhat cooler reception from the Liverpool faithful.

Torres upset many Reds fans when he left for Chelsea in January 2011 for a record British transfer fee of £50 million, but he insists he looks back on his time on Merseyside with great affection.

“I owe Liverpool a huge amount – to the people, to the men in charge, to the city. A huge amount,” El Nino told the Times of India.

“Liverpool is a fundamental part of my life. They don’t remember me that way, but time will change that. I could not have chosen a better place to go when I left Atletico Madrid.

“That’s why I only have good things to say about the Liverpool people and the supporters particularly. I had a great three and a half years there.

“They made me feel really good there. I will never say anything bad about that club, that city.”

However, with Chelsea targeting Champions League involvement next season by achieving a top-four finish this term, Torres admits the need to take three points against his former club trumps any sentiment.

“This is the final part of the race; we have everything still to play for and it depends on us,” he stated.

“We want to win a trophy – the Europa League – and we need to secure a top-four position so we can be back in the Champions League next season. We need to be ready.”

The Spain striker has been in good form lately, with three goals in his last five games taking him to 20 for the season in all competitions – despite the fact that he has had to wear a protective mask in recent matches after breaking his nose.

He revealed that wearing the mask is not a comfortable experience: “It’s really tight; it has to be very tight to avoid any movement. So after training for an hour or so it starts to hurt.

“However, that’s better than if someone kicked me on the nose while it is recovering!

“I’ve had to learn to play with it because the doctors said I am going to be wearing it for four to six weeks. I’m getting used to it now.”

Chelsea, currently fourth in the Premier League with 61 points from 32 games, take on seventh-placed Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday knowing a win would take them back above Arsenal into third.

The Northern Irishman is confident the Reds will progress again next season but not enough to swiftly bridge the gap between themselves and the Premier League’s top four

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has warned fans not to expect huge improvements from his side over the summer due to a lack of money.

The Reds go into Sunday’s clash with Chelsea 11 points behind their fourth-placed opponents and the Northern Irishman feels that it would take a massive investment in transfers to bridge the gap in one season.

“Chelsea spent a huge amount last summer to try to get back towards the top of the Premier League again and that was on a team that had just won the Champions League,” he observed to reporters.

“It is simple: I just don’t have the resources to go out and do that. What Chelsea did demonstrates the task we face in trying to make that step forward.

“I believe we will improve again next season but we will have to do it in a different way. We finished eighth last year and we might finish seventh this time. That might not seem like a lot but it is one step towards where we want to be.

“There is not going to be a big instant improvement. That is the reality. I think that, unless you can throw £100 million at it … just look at Manchester City’s story.

“You look where they were for years and then they had a load of money thrown at them. They moved forward quickly but it still took another load of money to take them to the top. Unless you can do that, you are just going to make marginal gains but the little steps will take you there.

“There is no point me saying I think we can win the league. It doesn’t stop us wanting to win the league. It doesn’t stop us being the very best that we can. It is just the reality of where we are.”

Instead, Rodgers will continue to utilise the club’s bountiful youth system to develop new talent for his team.

“You can have the best academy in the world but if you don’t have a manager who gives young players opportunities they’ve got no hope and no chance,” he replied when asked about how the current Chelsea boss paved the way for his young players while in charge of the Reds.

“We’ve got potential – I think what you’ve got is a manager who will give them a chance.

“Every club takes youth development seriously. Manchester United and Arsenal are other clubs that put youth at the forefront. The academy here is good, with wonderful facilities, but what they’ve had this year is an opportunity.”