Arsenal Close In On £20m Inter Milan Teenage Sensation Balotelli
by Mr Neutral on October 23rd, 2009 477 words | 5 commentsWenger continues to pursue talented young Italian.
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The agent of Inter Milan striker Mario Balotelli has refused to comment on reports linking the player with a move to Arsenal.
The 19-year-old has netted 12 times in 40 Serie A outings since arriving from Lumezzane in 2007, but has been omitted by Nerazzurri chief Jose Mourinho on more than one occasion in the past for displaying both a poor attitude and questionable temperament.
The forward was recently dismissed in the Champions League clash with Rubin Kazan, and saw red for the Italian U21s during the European Championships in Sweden this summer for retaliating to a challenge from the hosts’ Pontus Wernbloom.
Despite these blots on his copybook, Gunners’ boss Arsene Wenger revealed his admiration for the forward last month, tipping him to excel in Europe, while West Ham were also linked with the player during the close-season.
And, according to The Sun, scouts for the Emirates Stadium side were in Italy last week to watch Balotelli in action as the San Siro outfit thumped Genoa 5-0.
Balotelli could be available for at least a loan move in the New Year, with Diego Milito, Samuel Eto’o, David Suazo and Mario Arnautovic all vying for first-team places up-front at Inter.
However, the player’s agent and brother Corrado Balotelli refused to be drawn on the subject.(Four Four Two)
The relationship between Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho and teenager striker Mario Balotelli can best be described as a tense one as the pair are continually reported to not see eye to eye and the Italian Under 21 international feels he should be getting more of a run out but obviously given the level of success he is seeing from his Serie A champions, can not so easily find room in the team for the striker.
Arsenal have been scouting the 19 year old for some time and appear ready to strike if the two continue to be at loggerheads. Wenger may see Mario as the next big thing and a player he feels he could bring along nicely and build a strike force around.
Mourinho has also taken to occasionally playing Balotelli on the flank which is a position that doesn’t appear to suit the lanky forward who has good touch and lightning pace and when he is picked to play in such a role he invariably appears to get annoyed and tends to offer little to the attack. As an out and out front man he could become a very feared opponent and he has the ability to in time become a top notch attacker but he may feel that he will struggle to grow at the San Siro and may well actively push for a move to a club like Arsenal who are always keen on letting youngsters get regular starts.
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anonymous - October 23rd, 2009 at 6:02 pm
mario is a really good player and im surprised inter would even consider letting him go, as for his temperament, vieira was a bit rash early on but look how he turned out, if he could wenger should snap him up.
anonymous - October 23rd, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Balotelli is racially abused on a regular basis in Italy, whether he plays for Inter or the national team. He is also an excellent prospect and an Arsenal style player who can be disciplined and trained by Wenger to be a top class striker. Mourinho, once he decides to ignore a player, can be a real dick so Balotelli would be better off joining a foreign club, since Mourinho will never sell to a competiting club in the Seria A. It is a smart move for Wenger but the question is how much will Inter ask for the lad and how much would Wenger pay.
anonymous - October 23rd, 2009 at 9:24 pm
Give Mourinho Bendtner in a straight swap? Problem solved
anonymous - October 25th, 2009 at 1:06 am
>He is also an excellent prospect
The world is full of those. Jozy Altidore is a good prospect.
Whether they can be excellent professionals is another thing.
>and an Arsenal style player who
No. He is not. I watched Arshavin play 5-6 times before he signed and you could see he would fit in. a talented ball man who isnt afraid to give the ball.
balotelli has a million pound body and a 2 pence mind.
his physical skills are undeniable, his work ethic not the best and doesnt make the best choices on the field.
and any time you have a young player giving sub par effort because he doenst like his position even though its on a championship caliber team should be enough to give you pause.
Looking ‘annoyed’ and nonchalant is not the atittude you want in a young
player trying to break the starting 11.
This story is as old as the game..
> can be disciplined and trained
again, it can be said about any player but lets be honest, discipline is NOT his middle name. its gonna be more work than the average players… at lot more work and do you really want those?
do you want to bring a cancerous atittude into the club and risk the chance of players asking why some players get treated differently?
anonymous - October 26th, 2009 at 8:27 pm
pessimist:
just what arsenal needs, another striker with attitude problems. perhaps he’ll score a nice goal or two on this stop.
optimist:
i hope london can do wonders for his attitude and he finds his niche here.