Rumor Mongering: Palermo Kick Tires on Balotelli

Fresh on the heels of Liverpool’s draw with Tottenham, we resume regularly scheduled programming to bring you this update on the most epic of transfer sagas: where in the world will Mario Balotelli ply his trade next season. Pull out your bingo cards and place your markers on the square marked Palermo.

Reports out of Italy today assert that Palermo’s president, Maurizio Zamparini, apparently called Mario today to gauge the striker’s interest in moving to the Sicilian club. Purportedly, Mario expressed his interest in joining, but as with every single deal involving the striker, the deal will hinge on whether or not Liverpool are willing to subsidize a portion of the player’s wages.

The same reports cite a lack of interest on Balotelli’s part to join Nice, which was the last destination for Mario on our global trek to link all the football clubs with the Italian striker.

This rumor seems far less likely than the link to Nice given that it presumes to relay the contents of two phone calls, including that one occurred at lunch time. To be fair, Palermo is a really beautiful town with architecture that dates back millennia, and one could do far worse than find themselves living on the beach in Sicily. No, really, look at this place!

Four days left before the transfer window ends and we can all go back to focusing on games alone. In the meantime, one expects at least five or a hundred clubs will find themselves linked to Balotelli; whether Liverpool will choose to terminate his contract or subsidize the cost of moving him on likely remains the gravamen of the matter. One hopes Mario will find somewhere the world can yet again appreciate his talents and A+ hair game under the bright lights.