Manchester City’s enigmatic Italian striker Mario Balotelli was sent off in Sunday’s 1-1 English Premier League draw against Liverpool, but his boss Roberto Mancini defended his actions saying he didn’t deserve his marching orders.
However, at the time there were some words exchanged between the pair as Balotelli exited Anfield following his dismissal. Mancini appeared angry but later defended his man to the media.
Balotelli was sent off after 83 minutes for his second bookable offence, as raised elbow on Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel as a long ball came forward. There was some doubt about his intention in the incident and Mancini reiterated that had to do with his reputation.
“It is not correct, the [second] yellow card. I do not agree with this yellow card. The referee didn’t want to get a yellow card out, he did nothing for the yellow card,” Mancini said.
“I think every time Mario does something many players provoke him. I think the referee gave a free-kick but didn’t want to give a yellow card until all the Liverpool players complained. I watched the replay and for me it is nothing.
“This situation in the Premier League - there are a lot in every game; I don’t think all are yellow cards. He moved his arm and Skrtel was like a young player and I don’t think that was good.
“Mario should pay attention because he knows many players provoke him and this is not correct. Because of his red card we conceded a few chances from Liverpool.”
There will be plenty of people saying this is just the latest episode in the life-time saga that is Balotelli, but Mancini does appear to be getting the best out of him of late and his stance in this incident seemed fair in many matters.
It was only in pre-season that Mancini’s showmanship on the club’s US tour came to the fore, attempting an outrageous flick which didn’t come off. Mancini benched him, after another exchange on the sidelines and they moved on.
Mancini has also had to deal with another enigmatic striker this season, Carlos Tevez, and the widespread consensus is the City boss has done the job well, following the Argentine’s refusal to come off the subs bench in a Champions League game against Bayern Munich.
Dealing with Balotelli is another man management challenge for Mancini but he is proving to be wise in how he deals with these characters.
Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish said about Balotelli after Sunday’s game: “Sometimes he doesn’t help himself. Maybe he gets punished for things other people wouldn’t get punished for. But if you help yourself, you don’t get into those situations.”
However, Mancini wasn’t getting into such arguments and insisted the Italian wasn’t being forced to change his ways or refine his character.
“We don’t have a problem with Mario. He’s young. We can’t change Mario in one month, two months, three months,” Mancini said.
“If he can [change], he can do everything. In the last three months he has been playing very well. He’s scored a lot of goals and been an important player for us.”
Indeed, Mancini is the man to keep getting the best out of him and ensuring he remains an important player for City as they charge towards the English title.