Mario Balotelli

Mario Barwuah Balotelli, born on 12 August 1990 in Palermo, Italy. He is an Italian footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester City and the Italian national team. Known for his pace, technical ability, and petulant attitude, Balotelli (often nicknamed Super Mario) can play anywhere along the front line. He is a set-piece specialist and is regarded as a promising yet fiery young striker.

Balotelli was born to Ghanaian immigrants Thomas and Rose Barwuah in the Italian city of Palermo. The family moved to Bagnolo Mella in the province of Brescia, Lombardy shortly after Balotelli was born. As a young child, Balotelli had life-threatening complications with his intestines which led to a series of operations, but his condition improved by spring 1992. However Mario's health problems and cramped lifestyle meant the Barwuahs decided to ask for the help of social services who recommended that Mario should be fostered. In 1993, at the age of three, the Barwuah family agreed to entrust Mario to Francesco and Silvia Balotelli, with the legal move successively formalized by the Court of Brescia. Balotelli later accused his biological parents of "glory hunting", stating that they only wanted him back when he became famous. They lived in Concesio, a town and comune in Brescia. According to Law 91 of 5 February 1992, Balotelli had to wait until his 18th birthday in order to request Italian citizenship, as his adoption was never made definitive. He officially gained citizenship on 13 August 2008.

Having had an unsuccessful trial with Barcelona aged 15, Balotelli was signed by Internazionale in 2006, on a loan deal with an option to purchase. He started in their under-17 squad then joined the Primavera under-20 team at the age of 16. He scored a tie-breaking penalty into the Primavera league final 1–0 win over Sampdoria, prompting high praise from people including Inter chairman Massimo Moratti.

Balotelli made his first team and Serie A debut in December 2007, replacing David Suazo in a 2–0 win against Cagliari. Three days later, he featured in the starting lineup in a Coppa Italia match against Reggina, scoring two goals in a 4–1 win. Balotelli gained national attention after he scored two goals against Juventus in the return leg of the Coppa Italia quarter-finals, being instrumental in a 3–2 away win for the Nerazzurri. His first Serie A goal then came in April 2008 in a 2-0 away win against Atalanta. Inter went on to win the 2007–08 scudetto. Balotelli was a substitute in the 2008 Supercoppa Italiana final against Roma. He came on as a replacement for Luís Figo, scoring in the 83rd minute. Inter went on to win the final 6–5 on penalties after the match ended 2–2.

Balotelli in 2008 at 18 years old

Before the start of the 2008–09 season Balotelli signed a three-year contract with Inter. The maximum length he could sign. In November 2008, he scored his first Champions League goal, against Cypriot side Anorthosis Famagusta, becoming the youngest Inter player ever to score in the Champions League. At 18 years and 85 days he beat the previous record set by Obafemi Martins, at 18 years and 145 days. In April 2009, Balotelli scored Inter's goal in a 1–1 draw with Juventus, and was racially abused by Juventus fans throughout the game, including chants such as "a Black Italian does not exist". This led to Massimo Moratti saying that he would have pulled his team off if he had been present. The racist chants were also condemned by Juventus chairman Giovanni Cobolli Gigli. Juventus were handed a one game home fan ban because of the incident. Inter won the Serie A for the fourth time in a row.

In his second season with Inter's first team, Balotelli had a number of disciplinary problems, most notably involving Inter head coach José Mourinho who excluded him from the senior team in the second half of January. The Portuguese boss stated "as far as I'm concerned, a young boy like him cannot allow himself to train less than people like Figo, Córdoba, and Zanetti." Earlier that season Mourinho had accused Balotelli of showing a lack of effort in training. Balotelli also continued to be attacked with racist chants throughout the season, becoming the focus of Juventus fans even during games not involving Internazionale at all; such choruses then led to Juventus being fined twice and the club ultimately being punished with a partial stadium closure due to repeated racist chants.

Balotelli's disciplinary problems and difficult relationship with Mourinho continued in the 2009–10 season. In November, Inter drew 1–1 against Roma and Mourinho criticized his players, even going as far as saying that Balotelli "came close to a zero rating". The young striker again incurred the wrath of Juve fans in the heated Derby d'Italia away encounter with Juventus on 5 December 2009 which Inter lost 2–1. When he was elbowed by Juve midfielder Felipe Melo in the shoulder, he fell on the pitch clutching his face and was promptly booked while Melo was sent off for a second yellow card. The incident sparked a fiery altercation between teammate Thiago Motta and Juve goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. The falling-out between player and manager reached its peak in the eve of the UEFA Champions League second leg against Chelsea, after the young striker was not called-up following an altercation with Mourinho. The youngster was then criticized by several senior players such as captain Javier Zanetti and veteran defender Marco Materazzi as well as his own agent, in the wake of Inter's 1–0 win at Stamford Bridge, London. In March, he came under heavy criticism from fans after he publicly sported a Milan (Inter's crosstown rivals) jersey on the Italian show Striscia la Notizia.
Zlatan Ibrahimović with Balotelli

In the wake of the recent tense situation, Balotelli released a statement of apology in Internazionale's official website, that reads:“ "I am sorry for the situation that has been created recently. I am the first person who has suffered because I adore football and I want to play, and now I am waiting in silence so I can return to being useful to my team. I want to put the past behind me, look to the future and concentrate on the upcoming commitments and make myself ready."

Mario Balotelli 

After being frozen out of the team due to the situation, Balotelli was recalled to the squad for the match against Bologna and he marked his return with a goal in a 3–0 win. However, he once again caused controversy in a Champions League semi-final against Barcelona on 20 April, as he threw his jersey on the ground after the final whistle, in response to Inter fans who had booed him to criticize his poor performance; his reaction, which caused notable disappointment among fans, teammates and football pundits, was succeeded by an attempt by a small group of supporters to physically attack Balotelli after the end of the game.

After such events, Balotelli was excluded from a string of games, including the second leg of the Champions League semifinal versus Barcelona, but was successively featured in the remaining two matches of the Italian league that led Inter to win its 18th national title, as well as the fifth one in a row.