Soccer-Why always me? Balotelli might have a point

By Sam Holden LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - When Mario Balotelli scored for his Manchester City side at the Old Trafford home of their bitter rivals three years ago, he lifted his sky blue shirt to reveal a message asking the question 'Why Always Me?'. The enigmatic Italian might well be seeking the answer to that same question to this day. Back then, Balotelli's shirt stunt was met with amusement and admiration -- the act of a maverick who had scored the opening goal in a 6-1 demolition of Manchester United. Fast forward to Anfield on Wednesday evening and the now- Liverpool striker's decision to swap shirts with Real Madrid defender Pepe at halftime of a 3-0 mauling by the Champions League holders was met with derision from the home fans and anger from his manager. "It is not something I stand for. It is something I will deal with on Thursday," Rodgers said. If the world's media and some vociferous Liverpool fans are to be believed, the controversial Balotelli should shoulder a large part of the responsibility for the team's failure to recreate the sparkling form of last season. Yet there are other voices, who feel the controversial Italian has become a convenient scapegoat, covering up more deep-rooted problems affecting last season's league runners-up. DESPERATE LIVERPOOL Bought as a 16 million pound ($25.67 million) replacement after Luis Suarez's move to Barcelona, Balotelli has often cut a frustrated figure and scored just one goal in 10 appearances in all competitions since he moved from AC Milan. His languid and often sulky style jars with the energetic, high-pressing tactics that Rodgers had instilled in his Liverpool side last season. With every performance, the decision to bring him to Anfield looks more bizarre and smacks of desperation especially after Rodgers had earlier in the close season said it "categorically" would not happen. Balotelli scored important goals during his previous stint in England with City and has done so at both the 2012 European Championships and this year's World Cup with Italy. His failure in the red of Liverpool could possibly be explained by the fact that he is a square peg in a round hole, playing in a system that does not suit his style and under the pressure of replacing Suarez, who top-scored in the league with a remarkable 31 goals in 33 games last season. Rodgers took a lot of credit for moulding Suarez from a prodigious individual talent into an ultimate team player, helping him overcome the controversy of a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic to hit top form. Perhaps the Liverpool manager thought he could do the same with Balotelli, and he still might. Yet even he could not curb Suarez's wild streak completely, with the striker receiving a four-mouth ban for another biting incident at the World Cup, albeit in a Uruguay shirt this time. The Uruguayan is set to make his long-awaited Barcelona debut in the El Clasico at Real Madrid on Saturday. When he starts scoring in Spain, which he undoubtedly will, Liverpool might reflect that Rodgers's inability to use the money from that 81 million euros ($102.44 million) deal wisely is more to blame for his team's indifferent form than any of Balotelli's performances. LEAKY DEFENCE Liverpool are fifth in the league with 13 points from eight games but have taken only three points from their opening three games in Europe and face a difficult qualification route to escape from Group B. Balotelli's fellow close-season recruits Dejan Lovren, Emre Can, Alberto Moreno, Lazar Markovic and Adam Lallana have all failed to shine consistently in Liverpool shirts. In fact, Lovren and Moreno in particular have been culpable for goals conceded by Rodgers's leaky defence this season. Yet it is only the Italy striker that has regularly been singled out for criticism by fans, pundits and his manager alike. Liverpool are renowned for the unity of their dressing room that translates to Anfield's fans and the club's traditions of dealing with problems in-house rather than airing their dirty laundry in public. Perhaps Rodgers should concentrate on restoring the sense of solidarity that characterised their excellent previous campaign and focus on his erratic defence rather than publicly castigating the attacking failings of Balotelli. That way, Liverpool can be a team which is greater than the sum of one high-profile, yet misfiring part. ($1 = 0.6234 British Pounds) ($1 = 0.7907 Euros) (Editing by Toby Davis)