He was on the list of out-of-contract players
©IMAGO
The list of clubless players on Transfermarkt continues to be an important resource not only for football fans but also for club managers. These statistics helped former Super League and Italy National Team player Mario Balotelli find a new team in the United Arab Emirates.
Pietro Laterza, the club boss of Al-Ittifaq, one of the United Arab Emirates 2nd League teams, announced that they came across Balotelli’s name during their search on Transfermarkt. Italian manager, “It all started when we looked at players who were not under contract on Transfermarkt. As soon as we saw the name, we contacted the people around him.” he said.
To find Balotelli, managers had to dig through Transfermarkt statistics for a while. Because, despite the filtering options, the experienced striker was not among the top players among the most valuable unclipped players in the center forward position. After the meetings, the process progressed quickly.
Laterza, “We met at the beginning of December. A short conversation was enough to seal the deal. Mario is an absolute professional and wants to play football again.” he said. It is known that Laterza, who started his duty at Al-Ittifaq in October, is also a shareholder in Chievo Verona. The club had the right to transfer only one foreign player in January. This quota was used for Mario Balotelli.
The experienced striker, who once played for Adana Demirspor in our country, signed a 2.5-year contract with Al-Ittifaq, valid until 2028. The Italian striker last played for Genoa until the summer months. Balotelli played 36 times with the Italian National Team and stood out as one of the important names of the squad that played in the final of the 2012 European Championship.
