Mario Balotelli Named to Italy Squad for Euro 2016 Qualifiers

Liverpool's Mario Balotelli has been called up for Italy's Euro 2016 qualifiers against Croatia by manager Antonio Conte.

The team's official Twitter feed shared this image of the Azzurri selection:

The striker wasn't called up for the qualifiers against Malta and Azerbaijan, to the surprise of most Liverpool fans, but the 24-year-old's complete lack of scoring form led to Conte's decision.   

The Italian squad has been successful using the likes of Ciro Immobile and Simone Zaza in the attacking third, and Southampton's Graziano Pelle took Balotelli's spot in the previous round of fixtures.

The former AC Milan forward's inclusion in the squad comes as a massive shock, given he is yet to score his first Premier League goal for the Reds and is already facing a lot of criticism in the English media.

As shared by the squad's Twitter feed, Balotelli isn't the only out-of-form attacker returning to the squad, with Alessio Cerci also on the team sheet:

A week's worth of training with his compatriots may help the striker, who has always let his emotions dictate how he plays.

If he can find some kind of success in training and convince Conte he's deserving of some minutes, the Reds may be getting back a whole new Balotelli once the international break is over.

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