Which Destination Is Next For Mario Balotelli?

Author: Raphael Minter

Mario Balotelli has won everything there is to win in club football.

He won the treble with Internazionale in 2010 and followed it up with the FA Cup in 2011 and English Premier League in 2012 all playing for Manchester City. His antics on the field and his actions off it has been a concern for all the teams he has played for.

He had a bad season in 2015/16 and limited by injuries he featured sporadically for Milan and made a cameo appearance in the Italian Cup final where Milan lost 0-1 to Juventus.

Liverpool is a team on the rise after featuring in the Uefa Europa League and causing major upsets against Borussia Dortmund and Villareal. A 1-3 loss to Sevilla at Basel in the final was the only negative Liverpool took with them in ending the 2015/16 season.

Divock Origi, Christian Benteke, Daniel Sturridge and Roberto Firmino contributed immensely in lifting Liverpool up to such standards.

Mario Balotelli lacks match fitness and amid his exclusion from the Italian National team for the Euros, he is expected to have gotten more time to train and get back the potency he once had.

Balotelli Had the Love, Trust and Time to Shine

Former Manchester City boss and current manager of Inter Milan, Roberto Mancini gave Mario Balotelli a great start.

Former Italy coach Cesare Prandelli made him the first black Italian and tasked him with the responsibility of leading the line for the Azzuri.

Current Juventus manager, Massimiliano Allegri provided a safe haven for Balotelli by making him his first choice striker forming a formidable partnership with Stephan El Shaarawy at AC Milan.

In 2014, Brendan Rodgers kept faith in Balotelli upon all the criticisms from the Liverpool fans.

Sub-par performances landed him with just a single appearance under Antonio Conte and he was excluded from the 23-man squad sent to the Euros.

Klopp wants to stamp his authority on the game and with the Premier League set for the greatest showdown of all-time amid the managers on board, Balotelli might find himself in a destination other than Europe.

He had the love, trust and the time to prove himself but Balotelli is running out of time and would have to improve his attitude on and off the pitch if he is to play for a top club this coming season.