Liverpool Transfer News: Mario Balotelli Slammed by Paolo Di Canio, Top Rumours

Former West Ham United star Paolo Di Canio has slammed Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli for his poor attitude and accused him of falling short of his potential.

Italy international Balotelli is set to be shipped off from Anfield this summer having only arrived a year ago for £16 million from AC Milan. He has become surplus to requirements after scoring just one Premier League goal in 2014-15, per WhoScored.com.

Compatriot and former Sunderland manager Di Canio suggests the 24-year-old has only himself to blame for the latest debacle in his chequered career, which included an erratic spell at Manchester City, per Fox Sports Italia (h/t James Pearce in the Liverpool Echo):

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I’m talking as a coach. I think at some point you have to realise what it means to play with your team-mates, sharing good and bad moments and it doesn’t seem like he is doing that. Many coaches have tried to change him. (Roberto) Mancini has been like a father to him, but even he won’t reunite with him at Inter. (Jose) Mourinho understood immediately, he’s good at understanding players, and he realised that he could change him. Now he hasn’t got anyone to rely on. 

He’s still young, he’s physically strong, and he’s an incredible athlete, but he’s never taken advantage of his great potential. Sometimes in football you think you can just hog the ball, show off in some way and let your team-mates run for you, but you can’t, football is about sacrifice, and a bond with your team-mates. That doesn’t mean off the pitch in a bar, but being generous on the pitch. I hope he’ll recover, but I can imagine it’ll be very difficult, as he spends too much time on social media. It seems like he uses football to be a celebrity, rather than the opposite.

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Balotelli has been linked with numerous Serie A sides, though very few will be open to paying anywhere near the £16 million fee the Reds paid for him, per David Anderson in the Mirror.

Lazio looks a potential destination for the unwanted forward, with the Biancocelesti reportedly considering a loan offer for Balotelli should they qualify for the Champions League, per the Mirror's David Maddock.

Liverpool would likely have to continue paying a significant chunk of his wages should he depart on loan, but they may still be keen to get rid of Balotelli either way, per Italian outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Sport Witness):

There is a certain irony over Di Canio dishing out criticism about attitude problems as the former Lazio man was hardly a saint in his playing days.

But he is not the first person to have questioned Balotelli's mindset, and Reds boss Brendan Rodgers clearly sees no future for him at Anfield having excluded him from pre-season, per Adam Crafton of the Daily Mail:

While Balotelli looks certain to be on his way out of Liverpool, the Reds have been given a boost in their hopes of bringing midfielder Thiago Motta in from Paris Saint-Germain.

According to David Medina in Spanish outlet Marca (h/t Sean Kearns in Metro), Motta's mooted move to Atletico Madrid has hit a snag, thus leaving the door open for Liverpool to swoop in.

With Lucas Leiva reportedly set to be allowed to depart the club, the 32-year-old Italy international could add significant strength to the defensive-midfield role, per Sky Sports.

Even if Motta's move to Atleti does collapse, there is no guarantee that Liverpool will be successful in signing him up, as he is considering staying on at PSG, per French newspaper Le Parisien (h/t Ligue 1 expert Jonathan Johnson):

However, he would be a smart addition from Rodgers as he could bring midfield control that Liverpool are arguably lacking, especially with Steven Gerrard no longer at the club.