That same afternoon, Balotelli scored a brilliant training ground goal from the halfway line. Unfortunately, he did so at the wrong end. Seemingly unimpressed with being included in the ‘lesser’ team for a 10 on 10 match, made up of likely substitutes and youth academy players, the striker lashed his long-range shot past a stunned Brad Jones in his own goal. His teammates were stunned in to silence, while Balotelli chuckled away by himself in the centre circle.
He was also criticised for his pre-match preparation. The night before a crucial Champions League clash against Basel in Switzerland, Mario was out with friends, and the Reds would go on to lose the match 1-0.
By Christmas, Balotelli has been banned from driving, after being caught speeding at 109mph on the M62. While at Melwood, it was claimed that he still didn’t know the names of some of his team-mate, including regulars who he’d played alongside many times. Apparently, rather than eat with the rest of his teammates at Melwood, he organised for his lunch and dinner to be delivered to his Formby mansion – where he would sit with friends.
His relationship with former Inter Milan youth player Desmond N’Ze was also criticised. Balotelli regularly invited the player to our Melwood training base, until N’Ze was told that he wasn’t welcome. When this became the case, he was regularly pictured sleeping in the passenger seat of Balotelli’s Ferrari – waiting for him to finish training.
All this and more means that the player has no future at Anfield, as The Independent makes clear. The player knows this. However, with a substantial pay packet still coming in, he’s unlikely to force a move. He’s already turned down moves back to Italy (via Daily Express) and to the Middle East (via Daily Mirror), and it looks unlikely that he’d be tempted into anything other than a move to a side at least on the same level as ourselves.
Unfortunately, the painful truth is, who on earth would take that chance again…