Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson said Barcelona must increase their offer for Javier Mascherano after he was left out of the side beaten by Manchester City.
The 26-year-old was not in the Reds squad as they lost 3-0 and Hodgson said he might not pick the midfielder until the transfer window ends on 31 August.
Hodgson told BBC Sport: "His head is being turned by Barcelona, who are making overtures to him.
"But until an offer matches our valuation he will stay with us."
He said the sticking point with Barcelona was that the amount offered was "way, way below" Liverpool's reported £25m valuation of Mascherano.
Hodgson continued: "The player still remains unhappy. He is not interested in the justice of the fee, he just wants to move.
"It makes it uncomfortable for us. It's something to be resolved but certainly Javier was not in the right frame of mind so it was better to play with Lucas and Steven Gerrard, who certainly were committed to the cause."
Before the defeat at Eastlands, Hodgson said he hoped matters would be resolved before the end of the transfer window so he could pick the Argentine again.
Some reports circulating on Monday evening suggested the Catalan giants were offering only £12m for a player who cost Liverpool £18m three and a half seasons ago.
Hodgson has been consistent in conceding Liverpool would let Mascherano leave provided they received the right offer, honouring an agreement the player struck 12 months ago when Barcelona first expressed their interest.
Turning his attention to purchasing new players, Hodgson added: "I think we could augment our squad if we wanted to but the big thing is to make sure we find the right player.
"I don't want to be acting through panic, I want to make sure the player we sign is the right one."
This win helped us believe in ourselves and this is important
Dutch club PSV Eindhoven have revealed Liverpool have already been in touch over the possibility of signing their striker Ola Toivonen.
