Crazy Mario Balotelli moments – Italian forward Mario Balotelli is no short of controversies to his name. Just when England thought they had seen the last of him with Manchester City…
Italian forward Mario Balotelli is no short of controversies to his name.
Just when England thought they had seen the last of him with Manchester City, Liverpool made an audiacious bid to land the forward after their talismanic striker Luis Suarez packed his bags to Barcelona.
The former AC Milan striker has yet to open his goal account but the controversies are filling in pretty fast! In their Champions League defeat to current champions Real Madrid, Balotelli swapped shirts with opponent Pepe at half-time which has angered Liverpool gaffer Brendan Rodgers and faces a reprimand.
Rodgers said, “We had an incident last year with a player and that was something we dealt with internally. It’s something that doesn’t happen here and shouldn’t happen here.”
With the conundrum surrounding the future of Balotelli at its peak at Liverpool, we take a look at some of the crazy moments he has had on the footballing world:
Dreadful first impression
Mario Balotelli was a hit in Italian football and that’s why former manager Roberto Mancini wasted no time in getting the former to Manchester City in their 2011/12 season. But just as ‘Super Mario’ was announcing himself on the English shores, the Italian hit the news for the wrong reasons by crashing his Audi R8 en route to the club’s training ground. He was found to be carrying 5,000 pounds in cash at that time and when police queried about it, Balotelli replied, “Because I am rich.”
Dart controversy
Mario is at his antics again and this time it’s his team involved. The Italian showed lack of maturity when he reportedly threw darts at City youth team players through a training ground window back in March 2011. Though no player was hurt, the surprising factor was ‘Super Mario’ escaped any punishment.
Fireworks off the pitch
The former Inter Milan striker had a close shave with the emergency services in England when the striker set off some fireworks in his bathroom that led to a fire. So what does Mario do about it? He scores in the highly anticipated Manchester derby at Old Trafford with a t-shirt that reads, “Why always me?”
Uncanny prison break
Mario Balotelli and his 17-year-old brother Enock raised alarm bells in Italy when the duo were arrested for having a stroll through the grounds of a women’s prison in Brescia, near Milan back in October 2011.
Banned for stamping Scott Parker
His off-field antics got the better of him on the field as well when Balotelli received a four-match ban and a subsequent charge for violent conduct was issued by the Football Association thanks to the stamp on the head of Tottenham’s Scott Parker during a Premier League match in January 2012.
