Could Liverpool be the Making of Mario?

Often portrayed as a loose cannon, an individualist, a man with no regard for his teammates, Mario Balotelli’s career has been blighted by self-inflicted acts of stupidity however a move to Liverpool could finally be the making of the man known as ‘Super Mario’.

"Yes, I think I am a genius, but not a rebel.”

Far from outspoken he’s also not a man to shy away from the big questions in life Mario has often come under fire from media about his attitude towards training and his teammates, in particular his managers.

Jose Mourinho described his time with the Italian as a ‘comedy’; referencing a particular event where Balotelli received an in depth half time pep talk from Mourinho on how to keep his cool on the pitch only to be sent off two minutes into the second half.

Former boss Roberto Mancini affectionately described the Italian national as a “Good guy” and someone who was like ‘one of his children’.

The good words upon reflection don’t tell the full story of their times managing Balotelli. Mourinho rarely trusted the Italian during his tenure in charge of Inter Milan, often preferring Ibrahimovic, the troubled Adriano, and later on Samuel Eto’o and Diego Milito over the Italian. Given the story told by the Portuguese tactician and his general reluctance to work with youth it is understandable that Mourinho felt better to look elsewhere to find his goals.

Roberto Mancini considered Mario to be one of his children and more often than not treated the Italy number 9 like one during his spell in Manchester. Mancini himself was a firebrand during his playing days and he’d never lost his eccentric behaviour upon moving in to management. A training ground bust up between the pair along with a pre-season substitution based on nothing more than Mancini’s disapproval of the way Balotelli squandered a chance helped lead to a premature parting of ways.

On the surface it would appear that Balotelli was a loose cannon at both clubs however once you scratch below it becomes clear that both player and managers could simply never match up. Both Mourinho and Mancini can only be described as abrasive at the best of times; Mourinho successfully wound up most of Barcelona AND Madrid during his tempestuous time at the Bernabeu, whilst Mancini has a long list of fallings out.

Both managers also prefer to work with experience; the tried and trusted approach of seasoned internationals like Lucio and Yaya Toure being preferred to young players who need to be moulded as people and not just professionals.

Mario Balotelli was simply never going to work under either manager.

At AC Milan he encountered a different kind of problem. The cloud of institutional racism that – still -unfortunately covers Italian football hadn’t yet dispersed whilst AC Milan as a club could only be described as a rudderless vessel under Barbara Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani.

Within days of Balotelli signing for his boyhood club he was at the centre of a race scandal involving club vice president Paolo Berlusconi who made unsavoury remarks about the striker at a political meeting in Monza.

Like during his time with Internazionale Balotelli would be forced to endure overt racism from the terraces all the while having to produce the goals to halt the slump of an abject Milan team that was on the slide after the departures of Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva.

Unfortunately for himself and Milan the goals he did bring couldn’t make manager Allegri a better coach or prevent the club littering the team with mediocre talent to supplement the striker.

During the previous season the conflict remained, Allegri departed as Milan languished near the foot of the table and Seedorf returned to coach yet that did little to quell the internal backstabbing. Milan would finish the season in 8th to put an end to one of their worst seasons in decades, with speculation rife that Balotelli was deemed surplus by senior figures at the club.

It now appears that Balotelli will leave Italy once more and return to England, this time with Liverpool. What he’ll find is an ideal set of circumstances to thrive in.

Unlike at AC Milan there is no internal politicking going on, the club is now settled since Tom Hicks and George Gillett were sent packing back to the United States. In Brendan Rodgers they also have a manager who is interested in developing young players, helping them grow as people as well as professionals.

Under Rodgers Balotelli will be expected to work hard, and fit in to a culture that is all about the collective no matter who you are. Balotelli should have no problem doing the latter as despite the bad press he’s received over the years he’s seldom caused disharmony in the dressing room.

He will however need to improve on the work ethic that saw him resoundingly criticised by fans and media following AC Milan’s Champions league exit at the hands of Atletico Madrid. Should he do so he’ll thrive at a club that allows players to express their creative side and in a city where fans are respectful to a players desire to be allowed to go about their daily lives without hassle.

If Mario can embrace the creative environment he is afforded by Liverpool then there will be little doubt that the big Italian will finally fulfil his potential and, along with Sturridge, help fire Liverpool to their first league title in over 24 years.

Balotelli In Stats 12/13-13/14

Statistics from Squawka