While Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger gets set to splash the cash on a new striker this summer, former Gunner favourite Alan Smith has told Wenger that he should concentrate his efforts on signing Bayer Munich’s Mario Mandzukic rather than AC Milan’s Mario Balotelli as the 23-year-old Italian carries too much baggage.
“Balotelli doesn’t strike me as an Arsene Wenger sort of player,” he told the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast show.
“He’s someone who commands the headlines and there’s always something going on with him off the field.
“He’s a great player on his day but, for me, he doesn’t have enough of them. I just can’t see him at Arsenal.
“Wenger will be bringing in a striker this summer, hopefully a very good one. There are a few out there at the moment, just look at the likes of Mandzukic. But Balotelli? I don’t think so.”
