Am I the Only One Who Likes Mario Balotelli?

Ok, so in my previous post about Man City's Mario Balotelli, I was actually pretty negative about him. The thing is though, that was before he actually got used to living in England, and before he could do some of the funny things he's done. I mean, the guy gave 1,000 pounds to a homeless guy outside of a casino, and helped a kid confront his bully, and resolved their situation. I think that actually makes him a pretty good guy. Granted, he has done some stupid things, like throw darts at youth players, and drive a car into a women's prison "just to see what it looks like", in his words. But that's what makes him unique. What other footballer would even imagine doing those crazy things. He provides me with off-field entertainment, and that's usually after he scores a beautiful goal during the actual match. See? So you can't judge a book by it's cover. Or a player by the tabloids.

Mario Balotelli: Stupid, Stupid, Stupid

Without a shadow of a doubt, Mario Balotelli is one of the best young players in the world. No question. Some have even said that thanks to his clinical finishing, he could become the next Thierry Henry. But, the fact that he's a bit, what's the word.... stupid, doesn't help him win fans. During his tenure at Inter Milan, he caused controversy many times, particularly with two incidents. First, he stupidly wore a jersey of Inter's arch rivals, AC Milan, on live television to please a reporter. Despite being criticized hugely for that, he didn't learn his lesson. After Inter's victory over Barca, instead of celebrating with his teammates, he rage-quit his shirt, throwing it on the ground in frustration of the Inter fans who booed him throughout the match. I'm guessing that it wasn't a sad sight for the Italian fans to see him go to Manchester City. 

After having earned a reputation as a “bad boy” at Milan, it was the hope of many Man City fans that he would leave that behavior in Italy, and became the favorite of Manchester. To their disappointment, it didn't work out that way. After winning the Golden Boy Award for the best young player in the Premier League, he compared himself to Lionel Messi, and said that he hadn't heard of Arsenal's wonderboy Jack Wilshere, and that he'll rub it in Jack's face the next time they play. Quite ironically, Arsenal dominated the next game, allowing the Citizens no shots on goal. At all. And Balotelli didn't play a single minute, while Wilshere played 81 minutes. I bet he's really regretting saying that now, as Jack has been performing wonderfully this whole season, and I believe that he is truly better than Balotelli. 

And, it didn't even end there. Being down 2-0 on aggregate to Dynamo Kiev, Manchester City had to win 3-0 at home to insure their entrance into the next round of the Europa League. Being on a yellow card, with the game tied 0-0, Mario decided to ninja-kick Goran Popov in the chest, like his teammate Nigel De Jong did in the last World Cup. He got his second yellow card, and got his marching orders, putting the Citizens on 10 man. What was the point of doing that? Who knows. It's like he wanted his team to lose. He wasted a must-score chance from inside the six yard box early on in the game, and then virtually ended City's chance of going on in the cup with his red card. So, what has he shown the world of football? That he can't control himself, whether it be tackles, or showing sportsmanship.

Despite being one of the best young stars in the Premier League, Balotelli lacks what is required of a true superstar. He's still only 20, which gives him many years to become a true wonderful football player. His arrogance of not celebrating his goals shows just how full of himself he is. How can people tell that he loves playing if he doesn't even love scoring. Sorry Mario, you're quite good, but not Thierry Henry good.

But, I do want this pretty cool hat that he has.