I went with Balotelli, so looks like I'm the big sucker in here. 😀
I think the evaluation of Lovren is going to be affected by how the defence performs as a whole, so even if he's outstanding, the ratings will likely get dragged down if the keeper and centreback partner are not up to par. Given the unreliability / inconsistency of the keeper and CB partners right now, he's starting a few steps behind already. That's not to say they're dragging him down right now by the way - he's been pretty unreliable himself.
For someone like Balotelli, he can probably get by with, say, scoring 10 to 12 goals in the first season, and look to build from there. While our attacking game is still struggling somewhat right now, I think we're slowly improving. And in Sturridge, Coutinho, Sterling and Lallana, Balotelli already has an advantage in having a better cast working for and around him. How he does from here now is largely dependent on his own maturity. I think he might eventually get it when we're in better form and there's less attention / pressure on him. Big assumption, perhaps more out of hope than belief.
I'm not quite sure where to put Markovic at the moment, as I haven't seen enough of him to decide. He shows flashes that suggest that he's got the right ideas, but the execution doesn't always match up, and he hasn't shown enough ambition on the pitch right now. Reminds me a bit of how I felt about Henderson in his first season. Like Balotelli, he has a good setup around him to help him prosper. However, there's good competition for places there (and it'll get tougher with Ibe returning next season) and it's no guarantee that he'll beat the competition and get the minutes he needs.