Brendan Rodgers defends goal-shy Mario Balotelli after Hull draw

Posted Sunday, October 26, 2014 by theguardian.com

· 'Mario was unlucky,' says Liverpool manager
· Steve Bruce praises goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic

Mario Balotelli appealed for a Liverpool penalty but Brendan Rodgers was happy with this challenge by Hull's Alex Bruce.

Mario Balotelli's search for a first Premier League goal for Liverpool goes on after the striker played the whole match against Hull City and missed a couple of late chances in front of the Kop.

"Mario was unlucky not to get a goal," Brendan Rodgers said after the goalless draw. The Liverpool manager withdrew his misfiring striker after 45 minutes against Real Madrid in midweek and accepted the uncertainty that has been surrounding the Italian since could hardly have been the best preparation. "Maybe he thought he wasn't going to play today, and in the circumstances he did well," Rodgers said. "He's working hard and doing his best, he keeps getting into the right areas.

"He had one or two big chances in the game and he probably needs a goal to keep his confidence up. I've worked with him in training and I don't think there is any danger of him losing his appetite, he always wants to train, always wants to play. But strikers get their energy and their confidence from seeing the ball hit the back of the net."

Balotelli could have been sharper when the late chances came his way, especially on the occasion when he claimed Alex Bruce had pulled him over for a penalty. "I don't think there were any penalties in the game," Rodgers said. "I've had a look at them again, and it seems Mario was already falling over before any contact with Bruce. What looked at first sight like a foul on Steve Gerrard in the area turned out to be a match-saving challenge by Bruce."

If Balotelli was damned slightly by the faint praise of his own manager, then Steve Bruce was positively effusive about his performance. "I only saw highlights of the Real Madrid game," Bruce said. "I thought he did OK, I couldn't see why he was made out to be the whipping boy. Today I thought he was Liverpool's best player. I like him. I saw him at Tottenham and he ripped Spurs to bits. He's a bit of a maverick, and when you sign a character like that you have to treat him carefully, but there's no doubt in my mind the kid's got talent. He swapped his shirt with one of my players at the end, but this time he did it out of view of the cameras."

Bruce also paid tribute to Eldin Jakupovic, his third-choice goalkeeper, who made a rare Premier League start and ended up keeping the scores level with a string of saves in front of the Kop. "I didn't think any of the saves were exceptional, I expected him to make them, but he has waited a long time for his chance and he will remember keeping a clean sheet at Anfield," Bruce said. "Having come from Greece he found it difficult at first to adapt to the physicality of the English game, but he dealt with all the crosses Steve Gerrard could throw at him and some of them were very good indeed."