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According to local paper Nice Matin, Mario Baloteli is in Nice to complete a move to the Ligue 1 side that could be completed before the end of the day. Failing that, it is believed there will be no issues finalising the deal before the close of the transfer window tomorrow at 11PM.
Last week, Balotelli looked set for a move back to Italy with Palermo, but the Serie A side could only offer the player £11k per week, a wage that was seen as insulting for a front line striker in one of Europe’s top leagues where talented kids on their first contracts can often earn that much.
There was some talk that the player’s fondness for the club from the town he was born in could still sway him to sign for them, but in the end he has instead chosen Nice. Details of what wage Nice have offered, or even if the deal will be a permanent one or a loan, are as yet unclear.
Either way, though, with Balotelli’s Liverpool contract set to expire at the end of the 2016-17 season, it’s a move that would functionally end his brief Anfield career. Balotelli arrived in the summer of 2014 in a £16M from AC Milan, but he never managed to make a case for regular minutes.
He spent last season back on loan at AC Milan and similarly failed to impress enough to earn a longer deal, and has spent the summer linked with what as times has seemed like half the clubs in Europe. A move to Nice, which can offer him Europa League football, seems the best move for all parties.