Brendan Rodgers has argued that his move to sign the controversial striker from AC Milan was a calculated risk. Well, it looks like he is right as the club announced that the Mario Balotelli Liverpool deal has already brought them £50,000 out of their £16 million investment for the 24-year old striker. The figures were first bared by club's chief executive Ian Ayre while speaking at the Soccerex Global Convention in Manchester.
"Liverpool had success and opportunities to develop in the past & didn't take them. That won't happen again," said Ayre. "Having the right people and trust allows the club to maximise signings like Balotelli, leading to 50k shirt sales."
Back in late August, Rodgers hit back at critics who insisted that pushing for the Mario Balotelli Liverpool deal was a bad decision.
"He is a world-class talent and it is an area we need to strengthen. It is a calculated risk but one where we believe we can help him as a player and to mature as a young man," he said.
"I don't have any concerns at all [about Balotelli disrupting the Liverpool squad]. It won't be affected. He comes with a reputation but we hope at our club we can curb that behaviour. He knows he is part of a team. There are no egos or big-time Charlies in our squad. This is a group that's got to the Champions League because they are a team."
ight now, £50,000 is just a small fraction of the total spending that the club made for Balotelli. They can get that worth quickly if they'll start winning matches. Liverpool's current situation has gotten worse as their other striker Daniel Sturridge suffered a thigh strain and is expected to be out for team's next two matches, one of which is against Merseyside rivals Everton. As compared to Balotelli, Sturridge is more familiar with Rodgers' system.
