Timi Iwayemi: Mario Balotelli (LIVERPOOL) – “Why Always Me?”, an enfant terrible returned to the league and the media must have delighted in the return of their scapegoat. However, Balotelli was unable to answer his critics on the pitch this season scoring only one goal in 16 appearances for the reds. £16.om for one goal is definitely not what Brendan Rodgers expected from his Italian frontman.
Alternative Choices: Radamel Falcao (Manchester United), Dejan Lovren (Liverpool), Eliaquim Mangala (Manchester City)
Oluwamayowa Idowu: Mario Balotelli. Balotelli is proof that zany personalities get more credit as geniuses than they should. There have not been enough inspirational moments in his career to justify the delusion that most managers feed themselves that they can reform him. Throughout his career, every club he’s played for has ultimately been glad to get rid of him. That’s the ultimate indicator that the Italian is not worth the hassle.
Sidenote; whoever devises the transfer policy at Sunderland should get sacked for making the formalisation of Ricardo Alvarez’ loan contingent on their top flight status.
Michael Famoroti: There are quite a few candidates for this but one transfer stands head and shoulders above the others just for it’s sheer predictability – Mario Balotelli’s £16million move to Liverpool. The cries of relief and sniggers of mischief emanating for AC Milan following the deal were close to a frantic waving of blood-soaked garments for everyone to see (especially considering Milan themselves have hardly been beacons of sensible transfer strategies in recent times). The less said about this transfer the better – Balotelli has been a failure at Liverpool yet one that was predicted in many quarters. Rodgers must do better.
Somto Mbah: Signed for £16,000,000 (the zeroes are there for emphasis), Balotelli only scored one League goal. He seemed totally out of sync with Liverpool’s style of play and often just looked like he was taking a stroll in the park. He didn’t get any favours from Brendan Rodgers who admitted Liverpool might have made a mistake in signing him. He said this before the halfway mark of the season.
Balotelli is the the staple of Liverpool’s bad transfer dealings under Rodgers.
At season’s end, Gerrard said that he was convinced that Liverpool would have finished higher had Sturridge been fit, which goes to show how much of a non-factor Super Mario has become.
Dami Etomi: Angel Di Maria. I admit a more appropriate title for my post on this section would be ‘Most Disappointing Signing’. Di Maria was coming off the best 18 months of his career. He was Argentina’s best player in a world cup squad that included Lionel Messi; and arguably Real Madrid’s most important player in a season they won their record ‘La Decima’ trophy. Because of all this, I believed him signing for Man United would instantly make them title contenders. His style of play meant I didn’t believe he would require the adjustment period that foreign players typically demand in their first year.
Now, I am not saying Di Maria was the worst signing made by a premier league club this season. That ‘award’ would go to Dejan Lovren, Mario Balotelli or Emmanuel Riviere. What I am saying, is when you consider price tag, caliber and expectation, Di Maria has been the biggest disappointment this season. He has had bright sparks which include a very strong start to the season, a contender for goal of the season against Leicester and the opener at Old Trafford vs Everton. I also blame burn out for much of his short comings. Should he stay I believe he will show us all his true colours next season.