Mario Balotelli by numbers: How much his goal in Liverpool's 3-2 win over Tottenham has cost and other details you need to know

Balotelli scored his first goal in the Premier League since completing his £16m switch in the summer

Mario Balotelli scores his first Premier League goal for Liverpool (Getty Images)

He cost Liverpool £16m, he’s paid a reported £110,000-a-week, it’s taken him just over 24 weeks but, finally, Mario Balotelli has scored a Premier League goal for Liverpool.

The Italian striker emerged from the bench to do what we all expected him to be doing all season - primarily score goals - and secure a 3-2 victory over Tottenham to shoot the Reds back into the top-four chase. With the side now just a point behind Spurs and three behind fourth-placed Arsenal, fans on Merseyside are beginning to believe that they can still salvage their season.

So now that the 24-year-old has opened his Premier League account at Anfield, we take a look at how his figures shape up, and it doesn’t make great reading for the forward.

13 – Games Balotelli has played in the Premier League this season, with eight of those coming as starts.

1 – Balotelli has scored just one goal in the Premier League this season.

779 – Number of minutes Balotelli has played in the league since arriving on Merseyside.

48 – The number of shots the Italian has had at goal in his 13 appearances.

56% - Balotelli’s shot accuracy, representing 26 of his 48 efforts on target.

6 – The number of key passes and chances created by Balotelli in the Premier League.

Balotelli hugs Adam Lallana after scoring a goal

169

– It’s taken 169 days (or 24 weeks and 1 day) for Balotelli to register his first goal in the league.

1 + 25,000 – A one-match ban plus a £25,000 fine from the FA after posting a controversial image of Super Mario on Instagram. Balotelli would immediately apologise for the incident.