West Ham, Everton and Napoli are all being linked with a move for Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli this summer, according to Italian source Sport Mediaset.
West Ham have been rejected by the likes of Alexandre Lacazette, Michy Batshuayi and Carlos Bacca this summer and have now drawn up a shortlist of second-tier strikers.
One of the players supposedly on their radar is Mario Balotelli, who is also wanted back in Italy by Napoli as a replacement for Gonzalo Higuain, and Everton.
We’re all aware of Balotelli’s antics during his career, but the 25-year-old has never been able to settle at a club in his playing career.
After a hit-and-miss two-and-a-half years at Manchester City, Balotelli returned to Serie A with AC Milan for £17m where he scored 30 goals in 54 appearances between January 2013 and May 2014. It appeared things were finally falling into place for Mario on the field.
The summer of 2014 saw him return to the Premier League with Liverpool in a £17m deal but again he failed to settle, he scored just four goals in 28 appearances and was loaned back to AC Milan last season. Just three goals in 19 appearances wasn’t enough to make the move permanent and he has returned to Liverpool.
Having begun pre-season training with the first-team, Jurgen Klopp informed the Italy international he had no future at the club and is now working with the U21s until a move away is secured.
Besiktas are also interested in Balotelli who looks set to leave Anfield after a second ineffective spell in English football.
Sport Mediaset believe that West Ham and Everton both have ‘concrete’ interest in the striker this summer. Whether that’s on a loan or on a permanent basis remains to be seen.
