It will go down as one of our worst transfer gambles in Premier League history, sadly.
But after £16m, £90k-per-week wages, one season and countless tabloid column inches, Mario Balotelli is heading straight back where he came from, with AC Milan agreeing a deal to loan football’s most misunderstood striker.
The Liverpool Echo report that the 25-year-old has agreed to take a considerable pay-cut to complete a season long loan to the Serie A giants – who’ve also signed top strikers Carlos Bacca and Luiz Adriano this summer.
Despite the fact Balotelli won’t receive his full £90k-per-week, Liverpool will still pay a portion of his wages, and AC Milan have no commitment to buy him come the end of the season either.
The terms, which do not shine any light on either the player nor us, prove just how much he’s damaged his reputation since signing. It didn’t take long until Brendan Rodgers refused to select him in his match-day squads, despite the fact the rest of his forwards were not scoring goals.
In all, Balotelli scored four goals – supplementing his Premier League strike with one in the League Cup and two in Europe. We’re not going to miss him, although it would have been great to see him succeed.
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