Genoa in Talks with Balotelli but There’s a Catch

Mario Balotelli won’t sign for Torino, which will wait until January to replace Duvan Zapata, but is instead close to Genoa. However, the outcome of the negotiation will hinge on the result of their next game.

According to Il Secolo XIX (via Calciomercato), the parties have struck an agreement on the figures, as the striker would accept a low salary. The Grifone is very depleted in multiple positions considering the simultaneous muscular injuries of Ruslan Malinovskyi, Morten Frendrup, Junior Messias, and Vitinha. They just brought in Gaston Pereiro to address the emergency.

On the other hand, Balotelli is a precise request by Alberto Gilardino, who’s on shaky ground given the poor start by Genoa. If the Rossoblù fare well against Bologna over the weekend, the coach will be confirmed, and the journeyman would most likely join at that point. Their ownership, 777 Partners, is leaning toward rubber-stamping the acquisition despite their ongoing financial problems.

Instead, the boss would probably get the ax with another loss. His replacement would have to sign off on onboarding the mercurial marksman, which might not happen. Their CEO recently stated that Jorge Sampaoli offered his services to them, and he’s the early favorite to take over.

Our Take on Genoa and Balotelli

While Torino should have the resources for a proper substitute for their star in January, the Grifone are in dire straits, and adding somebody like him could provide a welcomed jolt. His conditioning would be a big question mark after months without a team, but they desperately need healthy bodies and a momentum-changing result.