Can & Should Milan Sign Mario Balotelli From Inter?

One thing's for sure. Mario Balotelli is a cheeky lad.

Because he has the audacity to confess that he is a Milan supporter when he plays for Inter. Because he goes to not one but two Milan games, one of them being the most glamorous tie in the Champions League so far this campaign. Because he sits beside a Milan player at a Milan game.

God knows that Milan need someone like Balotelli. He is strong, can burst frighteningly towards defenders, is accurate and powerful with his shooting and brings his teammates into play. His youth and athleticism would be a welcome boon to Milan's aging and slow unit.

Marco Borriello is not world class and is susceptible to injuries and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has not been given enough chances. Whether Balotelli can tactically accommodate himself alongside Alexandre Pato and Ronaldinho will remain a mystery unless and until they actually play together, but from a footballing perspective, Balotelli wouldn't be a bad signing for il Diavolo.

But needing someone like Balotelli is one thing, needing Balotelli is quite another. As good a striker the Inter teenager is, he has also earned an unenviable reputation of being a bit too maverick, a bit too arrogant, a bit too temperamental.

Whether Balotelli is hated by most anti-Interistas in Italy because of his origin or skin color or for his impertinent attitude problems on the pitch is a matter of debate but the 19-year-old doesn't really help himself by committing the same 'mistakes' over and over and over again.


Silvio Berlusconi might not exactly be a popular man either in football or in politics but over the years he has done much to allay cynicism about Italian football by putting forth a clean, politically correct, attack-minded Milan unit that has revolved around intra-club brotherhood and solidarity.

Mario Balotelli's presence wouldn't do much good to that puritan image if he continues to behave as he does. His youth and exuberance together with his imperious confidence would be major assets for the Rossoneri next season when reinforcements are imported, but in the dressing room the Palermo-born wouldn't be an exemplar.

Then there is the small factor of finance. Inter wouldn't sell Balotelli to Milan - or to any other club for that matter - for a small amount and the Rossoneri wouldn't find it easy to cough up that much cash. Even if they do, they would be gambling on a player who is ranked 318 in the Castrol Rankings and whose talent, although evident, has yet to completely express itself.

Balotelli's temperamental issue is a bit like Wayne Rooney when he initially emerged atEverton. Only, this time neither the media nor the public is very keen to indulge a talented footballer. After all, the Premier League hadn't and hasn't seen someone like Rooney before whereas Serie A has churned out countless Balotellis.

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