Thursday, 2nd October, 2014



Mario Balotelli has had his ineffectiveness in last night's Champions League clash between Liverpool and Basel underlined by a series of key statistics.

The Italian struggled to make an impact at St. Jakob Park and saw Liverpool go down to a 1-0 defeat to the Swiss champions.



Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers claimed post match that Balotelli is working hard, but his performance quickly came in for severe criticism.

And key statistics, according to French outlet Maxifoot, surrounding the striker reveal why.

 


Throughout the match Balotelli managed to touch the ball just 34 times, and on none of those occasions was his touch inside the opposition penalty area.

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Balotelli also made just eleven passes, only seeing five succeed, in a further sign of his fringe status throughout proceedings.

The striker joined the Reds from AC Milan in the summer for £16m.

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