Opinion | Balotelli could have a Cantona-esque impact on Liverpool
The modern equivalent of the 'enfant terrible' can do for the Reds what the Frenchman did for Manchester United in the 1990s
Despite Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers saying with great conviction it would never happen, bad boy Mario Balotelli has arrived on Merseyside and right on cue issued a signature faux pas to celebrate his return.
The Italian international tweeted two minutes before his new employer's planned statement about his surprise signing, "YNWA! COME ON LIVERPOOL!"
Welcome back, Mario. We were just starting to miss the man dubbed "unmanageable" by Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho and who had his former Manchester City boss, Roberto Mancini, contemplating psychological treatment, such was his maddening effect on his superiors.
Balotelli looks hungry for the glory and adulation he enjoyed in Manchester, more so after the relative quiet of Italy
Balotelli, signed from AC Milan, brings with him plenty of experience, an English Premier League title-winning medal and considerable talent that would greatly benefit any team.
But there is also all the well-documented controversy that travels with the 24-year-old, and some are asking if Liverpool have via their £16 million (HK$205 million) purchase jumped out of the frying pan after off-loading Luis Suarez and straight back into the fire.
Yet who would deny the game needs more characters, an "enfant terrible" to spice up the otherwise homogenic, tightly controlled players who repeat club PR guff and cliches.
Liverpool certainly need a striker who doesn't bite opponents in between scoring.