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Arsenal Revive Talks For €20m Striker But Must Meet €6m Wage Demands

By on July 22, 2014

Arsenal have revived their interest in Mario Balotelli but have been told he wants €6m-per-season AFTER TAX to make the move to the Emirates, according to reports.

We were strongly linked with the Italian international before the World Cup but our interest seemed to fade as we turned our attention to French hitman Loic Remy.

Talks with the QPR striker initially progressed well but we reportedly pulled out of the deal due to his excessive wage demands and it looks like he’s now off to join Liverpool.

The Daily Mail claim Arsene Wenger has now renewed his interest in Balotelli but after holding talks with his representatives, we’ve been told the 23-year-old wants €6m-per-season net – which would work out at around €126,000-a-week after tax.

Despite their public insistence that Balotelli will remain at the San Siro, AC Milan are understood to be keen on offloading the controversial striker this summer and the Mail suggest they will accept €20m (£16m) for his signature.

There’s no doubt Balotelli is a huge talent but he comes with such baggage, it makes him an extremely risky purchase. €20m seems like an excellent price IF we can get the best out of him, but I think his wage demands are likely to be a stumbling block.

I can’t see Arsene being prepared to give him such a lucrative contract due to the risks attached. If the worst happens and Balotelli turns out to be a nightmare and we want to sell, it’s going to make it difficult if he’s on high wages. Just look at the trouble we had trying to shift Bendtner and his £60k-a-week deal. Arsene won’t want another repeat.

So unless Balotelli lowers his demands, I can’t see a deal happening.