Mascherano, who has been angling for a move away from Anfield, is expected in Spain for a medical this weekend.
Liverpool had rejected two previous Barca bids for Mascherano, and also one from Inter Milan.
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"There are a lot of factors I don't want to be drawn on too much," Hodgson said in a news conference broadcast by Sky Sports. "But it's not easy to defend his actions because professionals are paid to play and when called upon to do so, they should."
"I don't think players mean it as a challenge to your authority or the club's, but it's a selfish situation where they want to do something and then expect the club and me, in my position as one of the leaders of the club, to bow down and accept they are going to get their way," Hodgson said.
"The deal depends on the utility star passing a medical at Barca and then signing the contract. Mascherano will arrive in Barcelona this weekend," the club said.
Mascherano would become Barca's third signing of the closed season after the arrivals of Spain striker David Villa and Brazilian full-back Adriano Correia.
