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Overreaction Theatre: Manchester United should pay Liverpool to keep Mario Balotelli

Liverpool's Champions League bid is over, but criticism of Mario Balotelli shows no sign of ending.

It would be fair to say poor old Mario Balotelli has had better nights in a Liverpool shirt.

But it is difficult to remember one.

According to the stats, Mario had one touch of the ball in the second half before being hooked for Rickie Lambert on 65 minutes at the KC Stadium. 

Prior to half-time, he was responsible for playing Michael Dawson onside as Ahmed Elmohamdy threw over the cross for the home captain to nod Hull's winning goal.

play.

As usual, the £16 million signing from Milan with only one Premier League goal to his name was made the scapegoat for Liverpool's latest defeat.

It is one that surely buries Brendan Rodgers' side's prospects of finishing in the top four. Manchester United are seven points clear in fourth place with only four games remaining.

It is a loss that should signal the end for the much-maligned Mario at Anfield judging by the reaction across social media.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE

KO

28 FEB 2015 18:30

REF

VENUE

KING POWER STADIUM

PM

Facts

 LEICESTER  V CHELSEA

• There have been just eight goals scored in Leicester's last six Premier League home matches (five for the Foxes, three for their opponents).
• Chelsea have won the last five Barclays Premier League games in a row against Leicester City.
• Leicester City are looking to win five successive top-flight games for the first time since January 1964.
• Chelsea's Premier League unbeaten run now stands at 13 games (W9 D4) since their defeat to Spurs on New Year's Day. They can match their run of 14 unbeaten earlier in the season if they avoid defeat in this game.
• Jose Mourinho has seen his Chelsea side keep a clean sheet in 103 of his 191 Premier League games in charge (54%).
• Jamie Vardy has scored three goals and assisted two more in his last five Premier League appearances.
• The Foxes have lost their last five Premier League games against the side that topped the PL table coming into the fixture.
• Eden Hazard has created the most goalscoring chances (88) and embarked on the most dribbles (254) in the Premier League this season.
• Chelsea have scored a league-high 14 goals in the opening 15 minutes of Premier League games this season.
• Leicester have conceded more goals in the first half of PL games this season (27) than Chelsea have overall in 2014-15 (26).

FA Cup set to be renamed Emirates FA Cup as part of three-year £30m sponsorship deal

• FA Cup is set to be named Emirates FA Cup as part of sponsorship deal
• It is understood FA have agreed a three-year sponsorship deal with Airline
• The agreement is due to be rubber-stamped on Thursday and will be worth at least £10million-per-year 

The FA Cup, the oldest knockout football competition in the world, is set to be rebranded as the Emirates FA Cup in a new £30million sponsorship deal

In a move that will upset traditionalists, the FA are understood to have secured a three-year contract with Emirates Airlines.

The deal, due to be rubber-stamped by the FA board on Thursday, is believed to be worth at least £10million a year — but comes at a cost for lovers of the 144-year-old competition.

Renaming it the Emirates FA Cup is a lot closer to title sponsorship than the previous ‘in association with Budweiser’ agreement, which was worth £9m annually.

But the FA, after a highly embarrassing season without any Cup backer that has put huge pressure on their commercial department, needed to offer more to attract a significant sponsor to the table.

The hunt proved hugely difficult even after the FA revamped their sponsorship team to bring in expertise honed at Manchester United. And it needed a bit of luck to attract Emirates Airlines, who have a massive sports sponsorship portfolio across the world that includes Arsenal’s stadium and kit.

Emirates have big money to spend after deciding last November not to renew their £30m-a-year FIFA sponsorship for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups with the corruption allegations surrounding those tournaments said to be a consideration.

And Emirates are no longer involved, either, in the tender for a Champions League airline sponsor, allowing the FA to offer a major football sponsorship alternative.

Dubai-based Emirates have their arch Abu Dhabi airline rivals Etihad as Manchester City’s kit and stadium sponsors. But City foresee no problems with an Emirates FA Cup.

The new FA deal with Emirates will also allow for a further six subsidiary sponsors for the competition, with Budweiser, Nike and William Hill already signed up. And the ambition is for the whole FA Cup sponsorship portfolio to be worth £20m by 2018.

The Emirates deal, likely to be officially announced nearer to the FA Cup final on May 30, is also well-timed for the FA’s commercial department with the new chief executive Martin Glenn arriving at Wembley next month.