Signing Mario Balotelli always looked like something of a gamble. Some fans were worried that his trouble-making antics would create a bad atmosphere around Anfield. Others were concerned that his goal-scoring record wasn’t quite good enough.
As of right now, it looks like the latter concern was the right one. His only goal thus far was during a 2-1 home victory against Ludogorets Razgrad, who aren’t exactly the most challenging opposition. Against Premier League opposition, he’s struggled to open his account and he’s even spurned a number of good opportunities.
I think it’s fair to say that he’s not exactly the deadly force that many fans were hoping for. There’s a good chance that Daniel Sturridge will be leading The Reds’ line for most of the coming season.
But this puts Liverpool in exactly the same position they were in when Luis Suarez left the club in the summer. They still only have one top quality centre-forward option. There’s no use hoping that Mario Balotelli comes good. If Brendan Rodgers is properly ambitious, he’ll try to rectify the situation during the January transfer window.
This brings me to The Express‘s claim that Liverpool are interested in signing up Real Madrid’s star striker, Karim Benzema. What a signal of intent that would be.
The Frenchman’s goal-scoring record is quite remarkable. Last season he scored 24 goals in 52 appearances. In 2011/12, he found the back of the net 32 times. In total, he has made 244 appearances for Real Madrid and has scored 113 times. Not too shabby, eh?
Of course, with that kind of goal-scoring record, he’s going to come complete with a massive price-tag. The aforementioned source suggests that The Reds may need to shell out as much as £40m to close the deal.
But given how much money Brendan Rodgers spent in the summer, it’s not clear that he’ll have much left over for a big deal like this. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
One thing’s for sure: Karim Benzema is the kind of player who could make a massive impact in the Premier League. Liverpool are right to be interested.
What’s your take? Should Liverpool test the waters with a bid for Karim Benzema?
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