Humiliation for Mario Balotelli as Indian Super League club reject chance to sign unemployed ex-Man City striker due to two key concerns

Balotelli, who signed for Turkish Super Lig club Adana Demirspor last summer, left the club after just one season and is currently a free agent. The Italian striker had the opportunity to take on a new challenge in the summer as Kerala Blasters were strongly linked with a move for him, however, The Times of India reports that the Indian Super League club rejected the opportunity to sign the forward.

The report further claims that there were primarily two reasons why the Indian club decided against signing the 34-year-old. One was his stature in world football, which was intimidating for the ISL side and led them to believe he was not a realistic target. Blasters also evaluated the player's past controversies on and off the pitch which further drifted them away from the deal.

Just a few months back, Balotelli notoriously lit up the Adana Demirspor dressing room by casually throwing a firecracker towards his team-mates. During his time at Manchester City, he made headlines when his house caught fire just before a crucial match against arch-rivals Manchester United in 2011, following a reckless fireworks display with friends. Balotelli, who has also played for Inter, AC Milan, Liverpool and Nice, has also long been a controversial figure on the pitch, often falling out with his managers due to a lack of discipline.

It remains to be seen if the former Italy international can find a new club for himself, although he might find it difficult considering the striker appeared in just 16 matches across all competitions and remained sidelined for the majority of last season due to a knee injury.