By Anthony Stanley (TTT Subscriber Dannyluke10).

He’s a natural scapegoat, a handily placed magnet for criticism. The lightning rod for the team’s travails.

But Mario Balotelli was far from the sole reason that this game ended goalless.

According to the media, both social and mainstream, Rodgers has made a monumental mistake in signing the Italian and the gamble has failed miserably. Balotelli is behind the stuttering start and his less than willing frame is holding the team back. He’s also responsible for the holdup in Anfield’s redevelopment and, quite possibly, the outbreak of Ebola in Africa.

You’re trying Mario, we can all see that.  Keep going, keep the fight up, and keep trying to play, look for the through ball, run behind the lines.

Just keep at it; try to be something you’re not.

Here’s the thing Mario, sit down here and let’s palaver. I understand, or at least I try to.

The reality is you are not, and never have been, a clinical striker.

But some questions have to be asked: why was Mario Balotelli bought in the first place? Why, when the club knew – probably as far back as last December – that Suarez would be leaving, did we end up with a striker who cannot play the role on his own? Surely the scouting system is better than that. Did Rodgers want Mario? Was he ever deemed suitable to play up front on his own, doing the job he does for Italy but with a totally different system? Was he really viewed as the type of player that could both forge a partnership with Daniel Sturridge and – when the inevitable injury struck down the England striker – lead the line in his absence? The former looked promising; the latter not so much.

Sanchez, Remy, Balotelli – it just looks like a link is missing doesn’t it? There’s no logical evolutionary path. There’s possibly a Bony fossil missing but that was never confirmed.

It’s disturbing and troubling. But it’s not like the defence (at least prior to this game), a worrying conundrum of an enigma, it’s patently obvious why we’re currently struggling to get goals. Our current spearhead simply isn’t sharp enough.

But let’s repeat it; Mario Balotelli has never been that clinical. Mario Balotelli has never been that dynamic. Mario Balotelli has never been a constant menace to the opposition.

The rest of this review is for Subscribers only.

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