Mario Balotelli back to Italy?

AC Florence are said to be considering bringing striker Mario Balotelli back into the Serie A. This was reported by the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport.

Balotelli would be free of charge after not renewing his contract with Olympique Marseille, which expired on 30 June, and is currently without a club. The 28-year-old had scored eight goals for OM in the second half of last year’s Ligue 1 season.

Florence coach Vincenzo Montella did not deny the alleged interest in Balotelli at a press conference: “He is a player of great quality and potential, some of which he has yet to exploit. But before I could say that he’s a player from Florence, there would be so many things to do.”

Balotelli had last played in his home country Italy in the 2015/16 season and was then awarded by Liverpool FC to AC Milan. Shortly afterwards, Liverpool handed him over to the OGC Nice, where he spent two and a half years before moving to Marseille.

For Milan and Inter, Balotelli has scored a total of 47 goals in 122 Series A appearances.