Liverpool held a round of talks with Real Madrid yesterday over the sale of Xabi Alonso.

Liverpool managing director Christian Purslow met with Madrid executive director Jose Angel Sanchez in Barcelona on Sunday to discuss Alonso, with the Reds in the city for a friendly against Espanyol.

Spanish speaker Purslow confirmed to AS that he had spoken with Sanchez but that no agreement had been reached, saying: "This (meeting) has only served to put our positions on the table. We need to continue talking."