Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter for the latest tips and offers Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter
Madcap Liverpool player Mario Balotelli has posted a video of himself on the internet which shows him being chased by a dog.
The Italian striker is filmed in a gym along with friends, two of which appear to be Armenian-Italian kick-boxers, who encourage the Labrador to pursue the 24-year-old.
More used to dodging defenders than dogs, a giggling Balotelli hops in and out of a sparring ring in a bid to escape the canine's attention.
He posted the video along with the words: "OMG BEST EVER!". In it he tagged Giorgio and Armen Petrosyan, who are professional kick-boxers.
Balotelli joined Liverpool last summer in a £16m deal but has failed to make much of an impact. Former Red and now BBC analyst, Mark Lawrenson, recently laid into the striker.
Show all 23 1 /23Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Simon Mignolet Made a good save from a Baptiste header and came out to collect a few crosses although, as Mignolet tends to be, not always convincing when he did. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Glen Johnson Nearly scored an own goal during the first period as he dealt with an awkward cross but thankfully for Liverpool put it the right side of the post. Got forward well. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Martin Skrtel Taken off just a few minutes into the match after an awkward fall. Replaced by Kolo Toure. N/A
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Dejan Lovren Gifted the ball to Blackburn on the halfway line which led to Can being booked. Wasn't the Croatian's only error. 5.
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Lazar Markovic Slid in a nice pass for Lallana early on which nearly led to a goal but failed to break loose and threaten with his pace with enough regularity in a congested midfield. Replaced by Mario Balotelli after 59 minutes. 5
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Jordan Henderson Looks more influential every week. Some good touches through the middle, sharp passing and high energy when not in possession. 7
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Emre Can Made a couple of wayward passes and was booked, although snuffed out a dangerous run from Conway and did what was needed at the back. 5
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Adam Lallana Heavily involved although was among the chief offenders of overplaying the ball in key areas. End product not quite good enough. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Raheem Sterling Was absent defensively at times, although proved quite handy at the back when he did bother to get back. Offensively was a nuisance to Blackburn throughout although failed to really penetrate. Perhaps lucky not to have given away a penalty after handling inside the box with Gestede about to shoot. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Daniel Sturridge Showed superb control to create a chance for himself but the shot that followed was snuffed out. The incident summed up his afternoon - showed his class but ultimately a frustrating afternoon when it never quite opened up. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Philippe Coutinho Not the Brazilian's best game. He saw a wild shot from range go well over and compounded that error with a terrible delivery from a usefully positioned free-kick. Showed great skill late on to work himself into space inside the box but then opted to shoot from an impossible angle rather than pass. 4
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Best of the Bench: Kolo Toure Came on in place of Martin Skrtel early on. Put the ball in the back of the net from six yards but was correctly ruled offside. Also hit the post when he should arguably have got his header on target. Defensively sound. 5
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Simon Eastwood Tested numerous times in the second half but he did as well as his manager would have expected. He also set up his defence well when defending set pieces. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Adam Henley He has played every minute of FA Cup action for his side this season. Sterling provided a threat but Henley rarely let him cut inside. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Alex Baptiste Forced Mignolet to make a fantastic save after his header looked destined to go in. 7
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Matthew Kilgallon Lucky to have not given away a penalty when it looked as though he had fouled Lallana early on. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Marcus Olsson The experienced defender marked Markovic well and didn’t leave much space for Lallana to penetrate. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Tom Cairney Playing just behind Gestede, he tried to be as creative as possible. The game did bypass him slightly in the second half. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Ben Mashall On the left of the Blackburn midfield. He wasn’t particularly effective and found it hard to get beyond Johnson who defended well. 5
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Lee Williamson He was always going to find it difficult to play against Henderson and Can but he did well. He dropped back to help his defence when he started to be put a little more under pressure. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Corry Evans He became tentative in the second half. He played too deep as Liverpool started to attack. 6
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Craig Conway Spurned a very good chance in the first half when he was one-on-one with Mignolet. Plenty of running in the second half, though, and caused problems for Lovren. 7
GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool 0 Blackburn 0 player ratings Rudy Gestede His presence alone was a threat to the Liverpool back four. His hold up play was also very good. 7
GETTY IMAGES
"Forget about Mario Balotelli. He is an absolute waste of time. He shouldn't be anywhere near this team," he said after Liverpool's 0-0 draw with Blackburn in the FA Cup.
"I can see why Brendan Rodgers threw him on today as he might just create something, but 99 times out of 100 he will let you down."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies