Balotelli was not on the pre-season tour to Thailand, Australia and Malaysia recently, and the player will also not be seen for Saturday’s final senior friendly at HJK Helsinki, plus a game earmarked for younger squad members on Sunday against Swindon Town.
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Having the ability to take a guy with the potential and skill of Balotelli would be a huge asset for Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool as they go through the grueling season, which includes the Premier League, cup competitions, and the Europa League.
Irish bookmaker Paddy Power then seized on the marketing opportunity to open a “Mario Swap Shop” outside Liverpool’s Anfield ground, where fans happily to swapped their Balotelli shirts for those featuring the names of “real” Liverpool stars, including Ian Rush and Michael Owen.
At the current minute, Liverpool have six strikers – Christian Benteke, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Ings, Divock Origi, Fabio Borini and Mario Balotelli.
Balotelli’s agent Mino Raiola has stated that Balotelli has no intention of leaving the club this summer and Balotelli himself is yet to weigh in on the situation.
Rodgers remains keen to trim his squad following the departures of forwards Raheem Sterling, Iago Aspas, centre-back Sebastian Coates, midfielder Steven Gerrard, goalkeeper Brad Jones and right-back Glen Johnson.
Rickie Lambert has completed his move to West Brom today.
Bologna, Sampdoria, and Fiorentina have dominated talk over the past week, but they haven’t been alone, and at times it’s felt as though just about every Italian side has either been offered the out of favour striker or has even publicly comment on him.
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It seems like Liverpool are stuck with the enigmatic striker, so why not make the best of the situation? We’d be interested… He didn’t play last year so it’s like bringing a brand new auto out of the garage if we did sign him.
