Sky Sports Italy reporter Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Barnsley linked free-agent Mario Balotelli is set to join Serie B side AC Monza.
Mario Balotelli – free agent – is set to join Monza, Serie B side in Italy! Medicals on Monday @SkySport @DiMarzio 🔴
Balotelli is *not* going to Vasco da Gama despite rumours.
He’ll join Monza with Silvio Berlusconi as owner, they’ve also signed KevinPrince Boateng months ago.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 5, 2020
As covered here on The72, Championship outfit Barnsley have shown a surprise interest in free agent striker Mario Balotelli.
The former Liverpool and Manchester City star’s representatives held talks with the Tykes. However, their pursuit of the striker failed to materialise into anything serious.
The Mario Balotelli ship has sailed
Now, it seems that Barnsley’s hopes of signing Balotelli have been well and truly dashed. Fabrizio Romano has said the 30-year-old will now move to Serie B outfit AC Monza.
Rumours emerged claiming the £2.7m-rated striker was also attracting interest from Brazilian side Vasco da Gama but an imminent move to Monza dismisses those links.
Where does this leave Barnsley?
Well, it would have been a big surprise if Barnsley pulled off a deal for Balotelli. It will be interesting to see if the Tykes now turn their attentions to other targets.
As it stands, Valerien Ismael has Cauley Woodrow and Conor Chaplin as his two main options through the middle.
Patrick Schmidt has featured as a striker as well as on the right-wing, while Victor Adeboyejo and George Miller are also options.
Over to you…
Barnsley fans, would you have liked to see the club strike a deal for Mario Balotelli? Have your say in the poll at the bottom of the page.
In other Barnsley news, we took an in-depth look at the career of one of the club’s former players – take a look at that here.
