Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew says that he is worried about a backlash from Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli, who finally ended his goal drought by scoring against Swansea in the midweek action. His goal came in the League Cup, which means that he is yet to find the back of the net in the Premier League. However, the goal ended his drought that stretched back to the late winner against Ludogorets in the Champions League a few weeks ago. Newcastle come on the back of a morale boosting 2-0 win over Manchester City in the League Cup.
They have had not much rest in the last few weeks, but Newcastle are flying on the back of an impressive form. Only a few weeks ago, everything seemed to go wrong for Pardew, but he is now on the verge of getting four wins on the bounce. Despite this, he says that Newcastle will be very wary of Balotelli, who he thinks is one of the best in the world. The 24-year-old Italian has been viewed as an enigmatic player, who can be very good on his day. Brendan Rodgers recently confirmed that Daniel Sturridge is unlikely to return until after next week, which once again means that Balotelli will continue as the first choice striker ahead of Ricki Lambert.
“I think he’s a great player, I really do. When I’ve seen the really, really big games come along, he has delivered for Italy and Manchester City. Big games turn him on a little bit. It’s the other games that you really need to focus on and that’s probably an area he needs to improve. We’re a big game. We are on the television and he’s under a lot of pressure, so I’m very wary of him because he can deliver on those days,” said Pardew.