Liverpool flop signing for £10.5m is having the season of his career and can’t stop scoring

Liverpool flop signing for £10.5m is having the season of his career and can’t stop scoring

Fabio Borini turns 32 today and if his career at Liverpool was anything but forgettable, his one in Turkey was the opposite

Brendan Rodgers’ first signing as Liverpool manager didn’t work out at Anfield, but 10-and-a-half years after joining Melwood, he’s making waves in Turkey.

Fabio Borini joined Liverpool from Roma in July 2012, in a deal worth £10.5m. The Italian later revealed compatriot Mario Balotelli was partly responsible for helping him accept the transfer, after telling him the Reds had the “most enthusiastic fans”.

But injury and loss of form saw the former Chelsea striker make just 25 appearances for the Reds, scoring just three times in two seasons, with a season spent on loan at Sunderland in between. He would eventually join the Black Cats on a permanent deal, bringing an end to his rather unremarkable career at Anfield. But his time on Merseyside was not wasted off the pitch as it was at Liverpool that he met his now wife Erin.

After spells at AC Milan and Verona following his departure from the North East in 2017, Borini joined Turkish super-league side Fatih Karagümrük. Now in his third season, the arrival of former gli Azzurri hero Andrea Pirlo as manager seems to have taken his game to another level.

This season, Borini has scored 16 goals in 24 games for the Istanbul club, helping them climb to ninth place in the table. But when he moved to Turkey in 2021, he joined a side that had no permanent stadium or training base. Borini, who has previously played for clubs including Liverpool, Chelsea and AC Milan, explained how he has adapted to his new surroundings in a recent interview with the Mail. He said, “He taught me how to adjust to what you have. Don’t complain about what you could have had and didn’t have, which I did for the first few months.

“Don’t you have a training camp? Ok, in my free time I go to the park twice a week to do my extra training… if you need to recover, go to the hotel or to the swimming pool. It probably took me longer than expected to adapt because it’s very different culturally. Everything is a little more relaxed here.”

After spells at AC Milan and Verona following his departure from the North East in 2017, Borini joined Turkish super-league side Fatih Karagümrük. Now in his third season, the arrival of former gli Azzurri hero Andrea Pirlo as manager seems to have taken his game to another level.

This season, Borini has scored 16 goals in 24 games for the Istanbul side, helping them climb to ninth place in the table. But when he moved to Turkey in 2021, he joined a side that had no permanent stadium or training base. Borini, who has previously played for clubs including Liverpool, Chelsea and AC Milan, explained how he has adapted to his new surroundings in a recent interview with the Mail. He said, “He taught me how to adjust to what you have. Don’t complain about what you could have had and didn’t have, which I did for the first few months.

“Don’t you have a training camp? Ok, in my free time I go to the park twice a week to do my extra training… if you need to recover, go to the hotel or to the swimming pool. It probably took me longer than I expected to adjust because it’s very different culturally. It’s all a bit loose here.”

Although he is Italian, Borini thinks and speaks in English, thanks to his time in England and his Merseyside wife and children. The 32-year-old credits Pirlo with making changes to the way the club operates, but admits that even a football legend of his stature can only achieve so much in Turkey.

Borini said: “He’s structured the way we train and the way we work … in terms of discipline. However, there’s only so much a coach can do. Cultural priorities are different. For us Italians it is very important how we eat and rest, not so much here”.

When asked about priorities in Turkey, she added: “It’s how little you do sometimes!”

Borini is the second top scorer in the Süper Lig this season and tops the assists table with eight. His contract expires at the end of the season and he would still like to return to England, but for now his focus is on Karagümrük.