Why Premier League sides should refrain from buying this maverick Italian forward

Back in the day, an over-exuberant youngster walked out of the tunnels of two major clubs in England. His talent was visible, but the outrageous amount of animation that accompanied him almost everywhere had become a matter of huge concern for the teams. After shifting clubs here and there, he hit a rock bottom and had to start his career from scratch. And boy, did he do that! Yes, Mario Balotelli is the man I am referring to.

The Italian maverick has resurrected his career by enduring a fruitful spell at OGC Nice in the Ligue 1. Super agent Mino Raiola claims that his client is ready to make the bigger switch again. Apparently, Raiola is negotiating with a lot of EPL clubs and a move to England is on the radar for the striker. However, is the former Manchester City man ready to return to England just yet?

Balotelli and the Ligue 1

After a torrid spell at Liverpool, Balotelli was allowed to leave for OGC Nice at the end of his contract. In his debut season, the Italian amassed a decent 15 goals in 23 appearances. However, this time the forward seems to have brought his game a step above. In 19 matches, Balotelli has scored 13 goals and created 20 goal-scoring chances too. Ever since his move to OGC Nice, the striker seems to have improved his link-up play.

He looks to be adept at finding his teammates and often drops down a line to orchestrate the play from the centre. Balotelli has a passing accuracy of 73%, an impressive figure for a striker. Moreover, the lad seems to have decreased his showboating tricks and sticks to the job in his hand. He has a shooting accuracy of 64%, another huge indicator of his increased discipline. However, can a move to England actually happen?

PL has many quality strikers already

If you look through the top six clubs, then the attacking department of the clubs seem to be fulfilled according to the demands of the manager. Yeah, Chelsea can turn out to be a potential suitor, but with Morata and Giroud already present, Balotelli might not get the nod. Similarly, only Liverpool lack a good backup to Roberto Firmino. However, after his rather humiliating exit from the Reds last time around, Balotelli is unlikely to move there.

Even the mid-table clubs like Leicester are well packed in the offensive department. Moreover, the gap between the quality of Ligue 1 and the Premier League is excessive currently. Hence, most clubs would think numerous times before making any kind of approach for the Italian striker.