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According to the BBC, police in Liverpool are today investigating a report that Mario Balotelli threatened a woman who was taking pictures of his Ferrari following last night's disappointing loss to Real Madrid. No matter whether he did, and no matter how serious a case it might end up being, it's safe to say this probably isn't good news for the player or club given Balotelli's ascension to scapegoat du jour.
With his failure to score and struggles to adjust to playing as the lone striker having become the dominant talking point in a so far disappointing season, and with the media already out to turn every dour look and premature shirt-swap into a storyline, this adds the potential for wrongdoing to the controversy—earned or not—that follows the striker wherever he goes. So. Good times. Especially if there ends up being real weight to the report.
Talk of public figures needing to control their reactions in public to a greater degree than average citizens aside, there's a gulf between an annoyed Balotelli telling off someone in his way snapping pictures following a tough loss and a more serious confrontation that could leave a victim fearing for their safety. Neither will help his image or staunch the negative narratives surrounding him, but for everybody's sake the former is obviously preferable.
It could end up being anything from "Annoyed footballer tells persistent fan to fuck off" to "Annoyed footballer threatens fan, guns car at them in reckless manner," and lacking any real evidence, speculation as to just how serious the case might turn out to be would be foolish. Whatever the particulars, though, for those holding out hope for Balotelli to succeed at Liverpool, things seem to be going from bad to worse.
