*Official* English Football Season 2014-15

[Tom Halsey]

I think they'll probably get decent money back for him if it goes wrong, so in that sense it's not a terrible signing. But I don't think he's that great at football. All players have some bad and some good games but for some reason when mental players do it, everyone seems to think that the bad games are only because they're mental, and if you just get them under control they'll play at their best every week.

But what do you get from him? His goals record isn't great, especially considering how many were penalties. He's worse than useless when the other team have the ball, his total lack of movement makes him really awkward to play with and his passing etc isn't anything special either. And he gets sent off a lot.

Haha the first paragraph in particular is so true.

 

[GIMH]

Surely that's a cherry-pick? Crediting Rodgers for keeping him quiet during the eight-month period between two massive bans.

I haven't checked but I'd guess that on the whole he spent more of his time at Liverpool suspended than he did at any of his previous clubs. He was always a tearaway but he wasn't so bad that we should consider only missing 9 matches a season a triumph of man-management.

When I said he man managed him well last season i don't really see the relevance of anything other than last season

 

[Ikki]

I hope Pirlo is right:

Nevertheless, Italian team-mate Andrea Pirlo believes that the 24-year-old has matured during his time at AC Milan.

Pirlo stated: 'Mario has matured since he has been back in Italy. He will be the first to admit when he was younger he made some mistakes - but he is not that player anymore.'Anybody who still talks about him in that way is living in the past.'

The 35-year-old midfielder believes that Balotelli would thrive in the right environment. He added:

'I have always said that in the right environment he has the potential to be one of the best strikers in Europe.

'He needs to be given space. The media do not need to write a story every time he goes to the shops - the time has come to write only about what he does on the field.'

As for Rodgers, I don't think we'd sign him unless he's had a good chat with Balotelli and been convinced he's ready to knuckle down. If he lets himself down, then so be it I guess. He's not costing much, we can recoup a lot of it back and we're mainly concerned with cover just for this season as Origi comes in next season.

Disagree with the posters dismissing his talent. Balotelli is a hugely talented player, it just depends on whether he's in the mood which is the problem. His per minutes goal scoring record is very good, even penalties considered. We don't need him to be a 20+ goal scorer anyway. But I do think in our system he can thrive as he scored 14 in 30 games in the league last year for a pretty crap Milan team that only managed 57 all year.

In interviews he's stated he wants to be the best player in the world. If he is serious about that then Rodgers will love to work with him and he will definitely help him.

 

[Jarquis]

The snide geographical digs are pretty poor huh? Nonetheless in terms of England of course nobody better is interested, as the only two options have either had him once already (City) or managed him already (Chavs)

One of the reasons Sanchez preferred Arsenal to Liverpool (and it seems as though Falcao has said the same) is because he'd rather live in London than Liverpool, so I'm not sure how a fact qualifies as a 'snide geographical dig''?
Or perhaps you mean I was wrong to believe that experience in one large footballing city in the North East might stand you in good stead to spend time in another 30 miles away?
What point were you trying to make?

 

[Jarquis]

Ooooh a discussion about 'talent'.

Nicklas Bendtner said he wanted to be one of the world's best and his next transfer would be to RM or Barca. That worked well didn't it.

 

[GIMH]

One of the reasons Sanchez preferred Arsenal to Liverpool (and it seems as though Falcao has said the same) is because he'd rather live in London than Liverpool, so I'm not sure how a fact qualifies as a 'snide geographical dig''?
Or perhaps you mean I was wrong to believe that experience in one large footballing city in the North East might stand you in good stead to spend time in another 30 miles away?
What point were you trying to make?

Literally no interest to respond to your second point seeing as how poorly you dealt with the first.

Maybe I misinterpreted you; the London thing is valid I just don't see the need to say things like 'put up with Manchester'. It's a cracking City after all.

North west btw

to

 

[cpr]

Its no secret some players are drawn to London for what it is and what it offers - To be honest as a fan I'm not disappointed if they go there if they are putting social aspects above the football.

As GIMH says its not like its a wilderness out here, plenty of 'decent' players over the years have lived and loved it up here - Football wise, the two cities become one in the fact that most live in the same Cheshire belt beween the two (given you can live 15 miles from both cities at the same time, which is probably how far out of London you need to go for a bit of green)... You hear of very very few players wanting to leave Manchester/Liverpool because they don't like the place.


The North East, as you incorrectly inferred us to, does have that issue, because beyond Newcastle and a few quaint Durham villages/towns, it really has little to offer and players do avoid it if they can...

 

[Jarquis]

Reckon you can get a bit of green in most places in Central London if you know who to ask tbh

 

[sledger]

Tbf, doesn't it rain in Manchester all the time? I seem to remember Fabian Barthez actually commuted there from France every day, or something stupid like that.

 

[cpr]

Reckon you can get a bit of green in most places in Central London if you know who to ask tbh

You really took me literally there, or deliberately took a misconstrued angle to make a poor pedantic point as the only retort against a sensible answer

OK, I'll rephrase.'Its probably how far out of London you need to go to get a £20m mansion sat in acres of land, in the middle of beautiful countryside, whilst still only being 20 mins from the training ground - meaning your friends/family can come stay whenever, and your kids can grow up in privacy without you missing out on 2 of the most vibrant cities in the country whilst playing football at the highest level with a Champions League winning club.



Barthez never really settled in England at all TBF, probably would've been the same in London, he showed little desire to adapt.

Of course theres always the argument of Beckham living down south to balance his wife's 'career' - certainly wasn't due to a dislike of Manchester though, and even when he didn't have a house here he kept a permanent hotel room to save on commute if his wife was away.

 

[vic_orthdox]

Alderley Edge ain't the worst ...

 

[Uppercut]

When I said he man managed him well last season i don't really see the relevance of anything other than last season

You said that to support the argument that he could manage Balotelli well, so it's all obviously relevant.

TBF I do agree that he's a good man-manager. Coutinho would be a better example. You look at his performance vs. Citeh at the end of last season and it's insane to think he was considered a luxury player before coming to Liverpool. Sturridge too was a really awkward one before going to Liverpool.

 

[cpr]

Alderley Edge ain't the worst ...

Yeah, there, Knutsford, Tatton, Hale, Bowden, Mere and the like really are millionaires row. Go round Knutsford and the footballers are the poor neighbours bringing the area down. The houses in Tatton share a private lake ffs... Last time I went to Mere Golf Club I had to take a loan out just to buy a pint.

And from there its 20mins to Carrington for the training complexes, all quiet country lanes which is great fun when you've got a nice powered car! (which is why I'm surprised City are moving theirs nearer the stadium in North Manchester). Plus there's the M6 right on the doorstep, Liverpool is probably 30 mins if you put the foot down, depending where the training grounds are.

 

[Eds]

About 30% of Balotelli's goals come from penalties. He & Falcao the main beneficiaries of the reputation boost you get from being your team's regular penalty taker.

 

[Furball]

I think they'll probably get decent money back for him if it goes wrong

Who from though?

He surely wouldn't go to another English club, bar maybe Spurs in a desperation punt to secure 5th place at Utd's expense, he's already played for both Milan clubs and I can't imagine Real or Barcelona taking him. Which basically leaves us the 2 French clubs.

 

[Pothas]

Plenty of sides around would pay 20mil for a player like that, Zenit or someone like that.

 

[cpr]

I cannot imagine Balotelli in Russia. Imagine the racist abuse. Imagine the reaction.

Can't see a German side picking him up either, doesn't seem the kind of player they'd tolerate over there (hooray for bland stereotyping), so it'll be either one of the ones Furball alludes to, a Spanish side trying to do a Spurs, or another Italian club - Juve being the main one, but I'm guessing he'd never go clubless thanks to Serie A in general. Good job he's Italian and not from a country without a top league, otherwise he would disappear into the wilderness.

 

[NUFAN]

How about a rich Qatari club or something?

Super Mario is a great signing for Liverpool IMO. The more quality they get the better, especially with the Champions League games this season.

 

[Ikki]

Ooooh a discussion about 'talent'.

Nicklas Bendtner said he wanted to be one of the world's best and his next transfer would be to RM or Barca. That worked well didn't it.

How is this a comparison? Even Bendtner's mum wouldn't have thought he could achieve that.

As lofty a goal as that is, Balotelli definitely has the talent and ability to be in that echelon; it's his application that has been lacking.

The point was really that he's mentioned it several times and if he is serious about it that means buckling down and listening to the manager and coaches. If he has that mentality and Rodgers thinks it's genuine; coupled with the price; that'd be reason enough for him to take the punt. There are also rumours of behaviour clauses going round so I think Liverpool aren't going in blind and are taking out some insurance.

We don't actually need him to be anywhere near that. If he is a decent back-up and scores 15 goals, he'd be considered a success.

 

[GIMH]

Yeah, there, Knutsford, Tatton, Hale, Bowden, Mere and the like really are millionaires row. Go round Knutsford and the footballers are the poor neighbours bringing the area down. The houses in Tatton share a private lake ffs... Last time I went to Mere Golf Club I had to take a loan out just to buy a pint.

And from there its 20mins to Carrington for the training complexes, all quiet country lanes which is great fun when you've got a nice powered car! (which is why I'm surprised City are moving theirs nearer the stadium in North Manchester). Plus there's the M6 right on the doorstep, Liverpool is probably 30 mins if you put the foot down, depending where the training grounds are.

I've a function at Mere Golf Club in two weeks actually. Nice place but yeah better put the remortgage application in

The other place loads of footballers live is West Wirral just ftr