He is no stranger to controversy. Both on the field and off. He has a petulant attitude and sometimes can cut a forlorn figure. But even his detractors know of the immense talent that he has. Balotelli is a victim of this huge potential. He has not helped his cause by always trying to adopt the lone ranger attitude. He has not been known to celebrate goals when he scores them. He is known for playing pranks sometimes potentially dangerous ones on his team mates. He fails to follow rules and always wants things done his way and his ego is of colossal proportions.
But the bottom line is that he is a talented footballer who can wow you with his knack for spectacular goals. He is a juggernaut when he is on song.
A player blessed with both strength skills and intelligence. Now when you are a Liverpool fan and a diehard one like myself you reacted to Mario Balotelli’s signing with both a sense if excitement and foreboding. He has never left any club on amicable terms. Berlusconi alluded to the fact that he was the rotten fruit in the Milan dressing room. I am all for the Liverpool way of doing things and but we need to give this football enigma a chance to prove his value. In all intents and purposes he has been a victim of the English press and their witch hunting of talented but troubled football players.
Joey Barton in my opinion has done his best to be on his worst behaviour at all times yet he is not always in the news like Balotelli. The team is in dire need of a recognized striker now that it is obvious that Daniel Sturridge is not on his beat form due to an injury prone season.
We have played the greater part of the season without a recognized striker and although we grind out results we are sometimes made aware of the lack of a goal getter in front of goal. Nobody doubts Brendon Rodgers technical acumen but it is obvious there is no love lost between the gaffer and the troubled Italian. Football is a game of confidence and once you give a player the support and needed game time he tends to shine. The manager therefore needs to put some faith in Balotelli and know that winning of trophies is the primary goal of every football team and players who are bought must be given the needed opportunities to help push this agenda. You cannot buy a player for obscene amount of money and let him wallow on the bench. It does not make financial and football sense to buy a player of Balotelli’s talent and ability and make him a bit part player.
We don’t need to become victims of the British press and their portrayal of the enigma that is our Italian striker but rather use it as a springboard to spur him and the team on to fully unearth his goal scoring abilities.
The mantra of my glorious team is to Walk With Hope in your Heart and you Will Never Walk Alone. So let us use this in our handling of Mario Balotelli. He can become a true great and a legend at Liverpool.
Kojo Akyene.
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