Manuel Pellegrini has previously praised West Ham-linked Balotelli

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West Ham United have reportedly been offered the chance to sign Mario Balotelli.

West Ham United need to find a host of strikers this summer, and they may be forced to consider some free agents as a result of strikers leaving without major funds coming in.

Andy Carroll went for free, whilst Lucas Perez went to Alaves for half of what he was brought in for, and Marko Arnautovic has just joined Shanghai SIPG for £22.5million – half of what West Ham actually wanted (The Mirror).

Selling Javier Hernandez and Jordan Hugill may only take West Ham’s striker income to around £40million, and with a huge move for Celta Vigo’s Maxi Gomez wanted, it’s unclear just how West Ham intend to flesh out their attacking options.

Free agents may have to be considered, with the likes of Daniel Sturridge or Danny Welbeck fitting the bill. Another is Mario Balotelli, and The Telegraph claim that he has now been offered to the Hammers.

That gives Manuel Pellegrini something to think about. The 28-year-old is a free agent after leaving Marseille, where he scored eight goals in 15 league appearances, building on a spell with Nice, where he hit 43 goals in 76 games.

The Italian has been getting his career back on track, finding the net with impressive regularity, and of the free agent strikers available, he has the best recent record of them all.

Sadly, that’s not the full story with Balotelli. His off-field actions have often been criticised, as has his attitude, with the controversial striker carrying something of a negative tag for much of his career.

Pellegrini only became Manchester City manager six months after Balotelli left for AC Milan in 2013, but he did have his say on the striker a year later, when he joined Liverpool.

Pellegrini told Sky Sports in 2014 that he thinks Balotelli is a ‘very good player’ who can play anywhere he wants, whilst noting that everyone knows about Balotelli’s character – most probably for right and wrong reasons.

“I think Mario Balotelli is a very good player. He went from Manchester City to Italy but I think he can play everywhere he wants. I know the character of Mario Balotelli – everyone that is involved in football knows about him,” he added.

Pellegrini clearly rates Balotelli, and given that he’s available for free, he may have to consider a move. The character issues are a problem, but West Ham are unlikely to find a better striker available for free this summer.