Liverpool must treble the wages of Javier Mascherano to keep the Argie away from the clutches of Real Madrid and Barcelona.

The Mirror says the root of the Argentine's unhappiness at Anfield is the fact that he is paid considerably less than the majority of the club's top names.

Despite being captain of his country, the man Benitez saved from West Ham reserves is only on around £25,000 a week - a fraction of the cash Liverpool's top stars Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres command.