Manchester United Transfer News: Mario Balotelli Eyes Move Amid Latest Rumours

Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli is reportedly keen on joining up with Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.

The surprising story came from Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Matthew Judge of Goal), which reported that the Italian forward has been offered to the Red Devils by his agent, Mino Raiola, having been advised he does not feature in the plans of Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.

Judge said, "Goal reported earlier this month that Balotelli has already met with Mourinho in his search for a new club, but a switch to the Red Devils was not proposed." The duo worked together during a stint at Inter Milan.

Balotelli has also been linked with another of Liverpool’s fierce rivals, Everton. According to Sportitalia (h/t Football Italia), Raiola is the driving force behind that potential switch, too, as the striker seeks to find a way out of Anfield. Chievo and Sassuolo, both of Serie A, are also noted as potential suitors for the Italy man.

The player will be desperate to get a transfer secured before the deadline, with his career in severe danger of fizzling out. These numbers from OptaJean sum up just how difficult things have been for Balotelli lately:

Balotelli is not the kind of figure who'd appeal to Mourinho either. Indeed, when the duo worked together previously, the illustrious coach said, "Balotelli has one brain cell," per Des Kelly of the Daily Mail.

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Since leaving Inter in 2010, the player hasn’t shown signs of increased maturity. Indeed, Simon Hughes of The Independent wrote last year of a disruptive influence at Liverpool, as Balotelli would interrupt coaches and marginalise himself from the rest of the playing staff.

All things considered, it’s little surprise to read that Raiola has been offering the striker to other clubs, with the deadline for any deal to be done edging closer. Balotelli’s Italy team-mate Andrea Pirlo summed up the player’s situation succinctly last month, per Bleacher Report UK:

When Balotelli has changed clubs in the past, his potential has always been a crutch. There are moments in his chequered career when the Italian has taken games by storm and produced remarkable segments of play. However, now 26 years old, he’s no longer an upstart; he’s a player who should be enjoying the peak years of his career.

Mourinho will not take Balotelli on board at United, as he’s seeking to build a team of physical, hard-working players who possess proven quality. The Italian may have been picked up by illustrious clubs in the past despite his misdemeanours, but after the past couple of campaigns, you sense that none of European football’s juggernauts will take a chance on him.