Rumour Mongering: Chievo Ready to Make Balotelli Move

You probably thought Mario Balotelli already had been passed on by every Serie A club, but today, word out of Italy is that there’s at least one side that hadn’t considered the 25-year-old striker. That side is Chievo, who it’s claimed are taking a very close look at the unwanted Liverpool striker.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Balotelli’s agent Mino Raiola was in town over the weekend to hold talks with Chievo’s president Luca Campedelli about a potential transfer. If true, it might at least offer Balotelli a choice of destinations this summer, something that looked to have disappeared.

Over the last few weeks, it had seemed that every club linked with the striker had backed away when it came time to actually make a bid. The Serie A heavy hitters like Milan weren’t interested, and minnows Sampdoria and Pescara and Sassuolo couldn’t afford him.

Turkish interest had cooled, Chinese interest had cooled, and there had never been any interest for Balotelli in Spain or Germany or England. About the only possibility left was Ajax, and they were waiting on the last week of August to see if they qualified for the Champions League or not.

If Chievo are in fact now interested, they couldn’t offer Europe like Ajax would, but the chance to rehabilitate his career in Italy might appeal. And having finished ninth last season, they would make for a slightly more respectable destination than the other Serie A clubs that have reportedly been interested.

Of course, discussions about a potential transfer aren’t a transfer. And given how nothing has come of every linked Serie A side so far, most would be wise to hold off on reading too much into reports of interest in the Italian press.