Liverpool sold £50,000-worth of Mario Balotelli jerseys on the day he signed from Milan

Liverpool's signing of Mario Balotelli this summer elicited plenty of reaction from football pundits around the world, both positive and negative.

While many thought the £16 million transfer fee paid to AC Milan signaled a great bargain for such a talented player, there were plenty worried that the mercurial striker would cause problems in the dressing room and eventually become embroiled in some sort of controversy that would derail his career at Anfield.

Liverpool supporters, however, didn't seem overly concerned by that possibility in the immediate aftermath of the deal.

Speaking at the Soccerex Global Convention in Manchester on Wednesday, Liverpool chief executive Ian Ayre said that the club sold £50,000-worth of Balotelli shirts on the day the transfer was made official.

At £65 apiece, that would work out to roughly 770 adult jerseys.

“You have to be ready for these opportunities. In the past we didn’t capitalise on opportunities but those days are long gone," Ayre said, per The Guardian.

Those fans figure to be out in full force with their new kits on Saturday, when the Italian will likely make his home debut against Aston Villa.