According to reports, Arsenal are interested in signing OGC Nice forward Mario Balotelli. The 27-year-old has been in a rich vein of form since moving to France from Liverpool back in 2016, scoring 43 goals in 66 appearances for Nice.
Balotelli’s impressive goalscoring form for Nice has not gone unnoticed with his former boss at Manchester City, Roberto Mancini calling him for international duty. The striker shined in Italy’s 2-1 friendly win over Saudi Arabia earlier this week.
Having managed to bring his career back on track at Nice, Balotelli has become a subject of intense speculation, with clubs chasing his signature, including Arsenal. But should the Gunners sign the Italian in the ongoing transfer window?
The Gunners are ushering into the post-Wenger era, with head coach Unai Emery looking to bring his type of players into the North London club. Emery has a big summer transfer ahead of him and should get his signings right to bridge the gap between Arsenal and the top-4 teams next season.
The Spanish tactician has got solid attacking firepower and a decent midfield, which no doubt needs reinforcement.
The Gunners have a plethora of attacking options which shouldn’t be tinkered. The likes of Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Mesut Ozil, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Danny Welbeck form a potent Arsenal attack, capable of blowing any team away.
As far as the midfield is concerned, the likes of Mohamed Elneny, Granit Xhaka and Aaron Ramsey give a decent look. If the North Londoners can sign a cultured defensive midfielder, the puzzle would be then considered complete.
However, what the Gunners solely lack is a solid defensive organisation. In a nutshell, Emery should prioritise revamping Arsenal’s defence before jumping on to other things. With that being said, Balotelli’s signing would make no sense.
The Italian striker has had a bit of a resurgence at Nice but Arsenal are better without him. Agreed, there is still a lot of potential in him as he is only 27 and has his best years ahead of him but the Gunners would be foolish to splash the cash on him.
While his Manchester City days are worth remembering but Balotelli himself would like to forget his Liverpool stint. The Italian was a disaster at Anfield, scoring just 4 goals before fading into obscurity.
Truly, it is great to see ‘Super Mario’ back to his old-self at Nice, creating, scoring goals and playing with a smile but Emery and Arsenal should not consider him at any cost.
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