“I don’t care what money is offered. It’s only this promise that was made a year ago that lingers over my head which means I am even prepared to go as far as this.

“If we reneged on what we’d said to him earlier, then we’d have an unhappy player. But we won’t have an unhappy player if no offer comes in or if the offer comes in and is so ludicrously below what he, I and the rest of the world knows he is worth.”

Hodgson added: “He has a new contract offer, so that’s up to him (whether he wants to sign). As far as I am concerned, I’d be quite happy to work the two years with him. If he then wanted to walk away, then so be it.

“The nicest thing of all would be if he signed a new contract, it’s there for him. But nobody is putting him under any pressure.”

Reports in Italy have also once again suggested Benitez’s Inter will move for Kuyt after their attempts to sign Giuseppe Sculli from Genoa stalled.

But the Serie A side received no encouragement yesterday, with Hodgson stating of Kuyt: “He is not for sale.”

Mascherano will miss Liverpool’s Europa League qualifying play-off first leg tie against Trabzonspor at Anfield this evening after suffering a calf problem towards the end of Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal.

Should the Argentine appear in the second leg, it would render him ineligible to play in the Champions League this season until the knockout stages.

But Hodgson said: “There’s been no pressure not to cup-tie Mascherano. But he’s injured at the moment and won’t play. He came off after about 80 minutes on Sunday with a slight pull in his calf muscle and has only just started to jog today.

“The worry for us is that he won’t be fit for Monday (at Manchester City).”

Meanwhile, Hodgson remains eager to bolster his forward line and yesterday admitted PSV Eindhoven’s Sweden international striker Ola Toivonen is a leading target.

“We have discussed his name, that’s true,” said the manager. “Like all teams, we are looking at a lot of players. I do know the player and think he is a good player, but can’t give you any further indication.

“That doesn’t mean we are going to rush in and buy him tomorrow. But he is a player who has come up, we have watched him and we know about him.”