Speaking to Chinese publication Xinhua, Mario Balotelli has hailed Liverpool’s fans as amazing but says he will never return to Anfield.

The Italian striker joined the Reds from AC Milan in the summer of 2014 as they sought out a replacement for Luis Suarez, who had joined Barcelona.

His time on Merseyside proved to be extremely disappointing, though, as he managed just 28 appearances and four goals in all competitions.

He left on a free transfer this summer when he joined Nice and has since flourished in Ligue 1, with six goals in the league to his name so far.

The future is looking bright and a move to another club could be on the cards but he insists it will not be to back to Anfield.

“[If I go back to England] for sure not Liverpool,” he told Xinhua.

“Because I found myself [performing] very bad in Liverpool. I said the team was good and the fans are amazing, but I would never go back to Liverpool.”

It will certainly be interesting to see where Balotelli ends up going, potentially at the end of this season.

His form in France will not have gone unnoticed and some clubs are likely to think he is well worth the gamble of bringing him on board.

Liverpool are unlikely to be one of them, though. The Reds are well blessed when it comes to forwards as it is and it is fair to say Jurgen Klopp is not a fan of the Italian.