20 Nov 2016

Boss confirms: Liverpool made us an offer to sign 'incredible' €20m striker with 'astronomical' salary

Liverpool offered La Liga side Malaga the chance to sign Mario Balotelli over the summer.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, the club's sporting director, Francesc Arnau, told Cadena Cope:

“Liverpool offered him [Balotelli] to us but we could not afford him. His salary is astronomical. He went to Nice because they produced an economically strong project. There was no possibility he could have come [here].”

Balotelli is reportedly on €86k-a-week at Nice, so Malaga's reluctance to shell out €4.5m per year is understandable, especially for a player with a (recent) history of underachievement.

With 7 goals in 9 games for for Nice, Balotelli is in great form this season, and in an interview this week, he insisted that ex-Reds boss Brendan Rodgers is partly to blame for his failure at Anfield:

"The biggest disappointment I have had was with Brendan Rodgers. I had fun with him in training, but he was disastrous when it came to his relationship with his players".

Balotelli also criticised Jurgen Klopp, albeit in a less stringent manner:

"I've got nothing against him [Klopp]. A situation had been created at Liverpool and he should have had more patience with me".

Balotelli appears to be earning his 'astronomical salary' at Nice, but it remains to be seen whether he can he maintain his goalscoring form across a whole season.

* Jul 2016: Described as an 'incredible talent' by Crotone president Raffaele Vrenna. Cost Liverpool €20m.


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