Liverpool do not expect AC Milan to attempt to sign Mario Balotelli on a permanent basis when his loan deal at the San Siro expires in the summer.

The 26-year-old has made just nine appearances for the Rossoneri, scoring once, after promising to work hard to salvage his career. Balotelli suffered a sports hernia at the beginning of the season and has struggled to fully recover ever since.

After spending a full season at Milan in 2013/14, scoring 26 goals in 43 appearances, it was hoped by the Liverpool hierarchy a return to Italy could spark a return to form for the combustible Italian.

But Calciomercato report that Milan are growing tired of Balotelli's demeanour and lack of effort and are increasingly unlikely to extend his stay before the rest of the campaign.

Sinisa Mihajlovic, the AC manager, said: “He is feeling a bit better, but he’s still not ready to start a game.”

Meanwhile, former Reds boss Brendan Rodgers has admitted he was surprised by his sacking at Anfield in October. “I wasn't aware [I was about to lose my job],” he told beIN Sports. “There was a lot of speculation for about six months.

“All I ever tried to concentrate on was getting the best out of the team, but we perhaps weren't playing as fluidly as we had done in the previous couple of years, but we were trying to work back towards that again and it was something I felt we could get to.