With all eyes on Diego Costa and where he stamps his feet following Chelsea’s fractious Capital Cup semi-final win over Liverpool, the other striker who left an unfortunate mark at Stamford Bridge was relegated to a footnote. Fitting, for that is how Mario Balotelli’s Liverpool career is playing out.
Sky’s commentary team heralded Balotelli’s 70th-minute introduction for Lazar Markovic as a chance to put one over the former Internazionale coach who labelled him “unmanageable” – José Mourinho. Ultimately, his contribution amounted to no more than weakening a previously impressive, dangerous Liverpool performance and unwittingly assisting in Chelsea’s winning goal.
Not all substitutions succeed and not all the blame for Branislav Ivanovic’s header belongs to Balotelli. It was his poor pass to Eden Hazard that forced Lucas Leiva to concede the decisive free-kick, and sail close to a second yellow card in the process, but a poorly organised defence cost Liverpool as much as the striker’s failure to track Ivanovic once Costa ran into his space. A wild shot over Thibaut Courtois’s goal, admittedly after a slight bobble, and a selfish attempt to find the top corner from an improbable angle were also typical of a Liverpool career that started ineffectively and has gone steadily downhill.
What did surprise, however, was the level of faith Brendan Rodgers showed at a critical stage in a striker so unsuited to his team, a damning assessment that was delivered by the Liverpool manager himself following Saturday’s FA Cup fourth-round tie against Bolton Wanderers.
Balotelli, with two goals in 19 appearances for Liverpool (eight as substitute), was not included in the 18-man squad for the goalless draw with Bolton. Three days later he was selected for a place on the bench over Fabio Borini, who squandered decent chances against Neil Lennon’s team but at least enlivened the overall display, then introduced instead of Adam Lallana and before Rickie Lambert. One can only imagine Lambert’s thought process as a fellow striker with more natural talent but without the same application gets the nod before him once again.
The 24-year-old cannot play his way into form or favour sat in the stands, true, but Rodgers’ withering critique of Balotelli post-Bolton suggested his “calculated risk” on the striker had run its course. It was not the first time Liverpool’s manager had explained why Balotelli does not fit into his plans, and again revived the question of why he was acquired for £16m in the first place, but his latest offering was relatively unprompted. Tuesday provided a contradiction.
Rodgers had said on Saturday: “Mario is the same as any other player, there is no special treatment for anyone. Fabio and Rickie have been working tirelessly in training and have contributed when they’ve come on.
“I had a good chat with Mario for an hour or so yesterday [Friday] and he knows what’s required to be in this team. It’s difficult for him. He knows the level of this team, the pressing and the aggression that you need. If you can’t do that then you are not going to be part of what this team is trying to achieve.
“We suffered in the first part of the season and we can’t go back to that. It doesn’t matter who the player is or how much he was bought for, it is about the team. If you want to contribute you have to be ‘at it’ every day in training. Mario is a box player but much more is asked of the team. I’m confident he will respond.”
The cynical theory that Balotelli was put in the shop window against Chelsea does not apply. There is an acceptance the forward will not be sold this month and that was reinforced before the semi-final by his agent, Mino Raiola, who confirmed Balotelli’s future will be reassessed at the end of the season. “We didn’t ask to leave. It is too early, with the injury, to say we leave in January,” he said. “There are no big problems. He’s adapting to a new style that the manager wants. We’ll see in the summer.”
Perhaps Rodgers trusted that Balotelli’s natural ability would finally deliver for Liverpool, as he did last summer when weighing up whether to sign a player renowned more for his antics off the pitch than performances on it. The wait goes on.
