The Fantabulous Adventures of Mario Balotelli

[therockbox]

I want to go shopping with Mario.

[Colly]

Ohhhhh Mario, tell me everything you know!

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/11122011/58/premier-league-school-named-city-star-balotelli.html

Typically rubbish Eurosport reporting, but Marios had a school/wing of said school named after him, because he's ace.

Edit: Bonus video! Mario steals Agueros gloves!

Edited December 13, 2011 by Colly

[Lineker]

Manchester City defender Micah Richards has played down reports of a training ground spat with Mario Balotelli.

Newspapers reported that the duo clashed towards the end of a practice match on Thursday, with witnesses reporting that words were exchanged between the duo before they squared up.

But the England international took to Twitter to dismiss the incident.

"Me & Mario are all good!", he tweeted. "These things happen in training & we shook hands after. It shows passion!"

It is not the first time Italian striker Balotelli has been involved in controversy on the training pitch.

Last season he reacted angrily to a tackle by Jerome Boateng and was also photographed clashing with Vincent Kompany in May.

While away from football he has also been in the headlines after a firework was launched inside his home back in October, causing extensive damage to his rented property.

[Liam]

"@jamesjammcmahon:

rumour of century: Mario Balotelli dressed as Santa, driving around Manchester, handing out money. Please be true"

That would be so awesome if true.

[EddieG]

brb, going to Manchester.

[Lineker]

He's like black Gazza

[Starvinho]

Apparently he gave some homeless guy a £1000, what a legend.

[Liam]

Apparently he gave some homeless guy a £1000, what a legend.

Unless it is another homeless guy, that happened a month or so ago.

[Clawson]

[Lineker]

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has challenged Mario Balotelli to improve his behaviour in the new year.

Italian striker Balotelli, 21, has scored 11 goals this season but has been the subject of controversy for some of his off-field antics.

"I hope the new year can bring a different way for him," said Mancini.

"If he wants to play well and have a good private life, he should have good behaviour always, not for one week yes and then change for two days."

Balotelli joined City in August 2010 and has been involved in a number of incidents away from the pitch.

His form this season has helped City top the Premier League table for much of the campaign, but Mancini insists the Italian international must improve his attitude if he wants to fulfil his potential.

"Mario can improve every week and every month," Mancini continued. "He is young and when you are a young player, you improve always.

"Every top player has a good private life and a good behaviour - they are the first in training every day. This is the way it needs to be for him."

Balotelli scored a brace of goals in his side's 6-1 win against Manchester United in October, despite escaping from a firework blaze at his Cheshire home less than 48 hours before the game.

He threw a dart at a youth team player in March, was substituted by Mancini for showboating in a pre-season friendly and has been sent off three times since joining from Inter Milan.

Balotelli was also involved in a training ground bust-up with team-mate Micah Richards last week and was linked to a similar incident with Jerome Boateng in December 2010.

No! Never change!

[Lineker]

While this is nothing new, I've seen on my Facebook someone has made a compilation of the life of Mario:

Why balotelli is a legend.....

>Survived a usually fatal disease at birth

>£10,000 in parking fines

>Car impounded 27 times

>£300,000 fine for throwing darts at the youth team

>Won £25,000 in a casino, gave £1,000 to a tramp outside

>Rescued a child from bullying

>Threw tomatoes at some Serie A manager

>Threw water balloons at Serie A meeting

>Started a fight with 4 bouncers, after breaking the no touching rule at a strip club

>Thinks milk with tea is strange

>Bibotelli saga

>Had a £120,000 Audi R8 imported and wrote it off within a week

>Had his friends approach girls in clubs and say "Balotelli will see you now."

>Sent to John Lewis by his mother to buy essentials for the house, like an ironing board

>Came back with a giant trampoline and a Vespa and Scalectrix

>Started fights with Kompany, Boateng and Tevez at training

>Was frequently seen at the AC Milan superstore while playing for inter

>Went on TV in an AC shirt with his name on while at inter

>U21s game for Italy, kicks a swedish player while he's down and proceeds to just sit on the pitch ignoring the opposition and the referee for about a minute.

>Is then offended when he gets sent off and protests about it

>He winked at Ferdinand at the semi final of the FA cup and celebrate in front of the Man you fans.

>After the FA cup final, on live TV, says "This season I have been s***. Can I say that?"

>Was stopped by police driving round Hulme (a real craphole) in his maserati with £25,000 cash on the passenger seat. When asked why he said "because I'm rich"

>Had to go off at half time in a game in Ukraine due to an allergy to the pitch

>Had to be physically hauled away by Zanetti for refusing to let Samuel Eto'o take a penalty that he had won

>Once broke up with a girlfriend via text while she was presenting a live television show

>Slept with a model while his girlfriend was asleep downstairs

>*** mental chicken hat

>When he won the European Golden Boy trophy, said he had never heard of Jack Wilshere

>Said he would find out who he was so he could remind Wilshere he came second

>Drove his car into a women's prison so he could have a look around

>Swore on live TV after the FA cup final

>Attempted a roulette back heel shot against LA Galaxy and missed

>Connections with the Naples Mafia, he even testified in court at a Mafia trial

>Brought iPad to bench during International friendly.

>Set house on fire using fireworks

>Said only Messi is "a little stronger" than him, and he is better than all other players

>"Why always me?" shirt, made for him by City kitman Chappy

>Drove around Manchester high fiving city fans from his car the day after >1-6

>Became the face of a firework safety campaign days after setting his house on fire

>Hands £20 notes out to strangers when in Manchester

>Chanted Rooney! Rooney! at the prostitute who claimed to have slept with Rooney

Legend.

[Starvinho]

What a guy, he's seriously an absolute legend. Football needs more characters like Balotelli I thinks!

[Colly]

Maybe one more so they can try to one up each other, but too many would dilute the amazingness of Mario. Hopefully it might be Enoch...

[Adam]

Enoch, you say?

There is room for only one.

[Matt]

Enoch's got a massive cock, Enoch, Enoch,

He tucks it in his football sock, Enoch, Enoch,

He shagged a bird and now she's dead,

He swings his cock around his head,

Enoch Showunmi, United's 21.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

"@jamesjammcmahon:

rumour of century: Mario Balotelli dressed as Santa, driving around Manchester, handing out money. Please be true"

That would be so awesome if true.

According to Have I Got News for You, he was handing out random amounts of money from £20 upwards, as well as household items like Sandwich Toasters. I only heard about the Women's Prison story for the first time on HIGNFY. Brilliant story.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

The Italian was joined by his girlfriend Raffaella Fico at St John's church in Chorlton, Manchester, on Christmas Eve and he shocked onlookers by putting £200 on the collection plate as he left.

Balotelli was then asked by the reverend if he would join the church in providing a drop-in Christmas dinner for the homeless on Christmas Day.

'Nobody could believe it when he walked in,' an onlooker said.

'The last thing anyone expected was a big celebrity like him turning up for the service but he was very polite and charming and didn't draw attention to himself.'

Balotelli has become something of a cult figure since moving to England from Italy.

He has been involved in training ground punch-ups, arguments with the manager and even tussles with playing bibs.

There were even rumours last week on Twitter that he was driving around Manchester dressed as Santa Claus throwing money out of his car.

While this speculation turned out to be untrue, Balotelli did show his generous side by putting £1,000 behind the bar at the Tudor pub in Peel Hall earlier on Christmas Eve.

He chatted to drinkers and had photos taken before then heading off to the church service.

[stokeriño]

Balotelli putting £1000 behind the bar is about as generous as me putting £2.50 behind the bar.

I mean, it's not like a pub's clientele are physically capable of drinking as much as is required to make it something comparable to his salary, but you know.

[Plubby]

That's ridiculous. If a dude who earns half a mill a year buys me a beer, I don't look at him sideways because he can afford to buy top-drawer wine, I drink my fucking beer and say thank you. It doesn't make the guy not generous, he could have *not* bought me a beer.

[stokeriño]

If you think I was seriously ragging on the guy for not forking out fifty grand on...I don't know what, could have bought half the pub probably...then you utterly misread my intent.