ESPN FC’s Steve Nicol gives his take on the problems Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool are facing this season.
Brendan Rodgers has to moved to defend his star recruit Mario Balotelli after the Italian striker once again failed to find the net in Liverpool’s 3-2 win over QPR, insisting that the former Manchester City man has not been signed to replace Luis Suarez.
Having joined Rodger’s team from AC Milan in a 16 million pound deal after Luis Suarez departed Anfield for Barcelona, Balotelli has only scored one goal in his first nine matches in a Reds shirt — falling far short of the Uruguayan who finished last season as the Premier League’s top scorer.
The Liverpool boss insists, however, that his striker is a “different” player to Suarez, and that it’s only a matter of time before the goals start flooding in.
“It’ll drop for the boy,” Rodgers said. “The most important thing to me is his work rate. He’s working really hard. It’ll drop for him.
“He’s seen as a direct replacement to Luis [Suarez]. I’ve said before, Luis is irreplaceable, a real world-class talent.
“That’s not what’s being asked of Mario. He’s a great boy, I’ve enjoyed working with him. He wants to be better. He’s a completely different player to Luis.”
