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The Italian striker has tried the patience of many coaches over the years, but he could have thrived on Pep according to Micah Richards.
Many managers have had their encounters with Mario Balotelli, but Pep Guardiola may have enjoyed working with him, according to former Italian teammate Micah Richards.
José Mourinho, Brendan Rodgers and Roberto Mancini, who was a great believer in Balotelli’s qualities, are among a large number of coaches who have fought with the striker.
However, former Manchester City defender Richards says Guardiola could have been successful with the now-29-year-old Brescia forward, although he is unsure how Balotelli could have reacted to his strict demands.
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“Pep would probably like him. Pep is obviously passionate and some people may see him as over the top, but he really loves soccer and Mario also loves soccer, so he actually could have loved it,” said Richards. objective.
“But Pep is such a perfectionist on the field, that if Mario didn’t reach the heights we all know he could, they wouldn’t meet face to face.”
“You see it [Raheem] Sterling scored a hat-trick or a game-winning man and Pep yelled at him on the field, talking about what he could do better or why he hadn’t. I don’t think Mario reacts better to that. But on a more humane level, I think they would get along because they are two main types. “
Balotelli’s time at Etihad Stadium was riddled with a series of off-field controversies, including throwing a dart at a youth team player and throwing fireworks in his bathroom. He even had a showdown at training camp with Mancini, but the former City boss repeatedly put his faith in his young striker.
“There were a lot of people who really didn’t like him because he was Mancini’s favorite,” Richards revealed. “He could get away with more stuff than other players and he always managed to start or go in or whatever.”
“But Mario, as a person, is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. He just does crazy things.”
“I am still in contact with him and he will always be one of my favorites. I just wish he could have shown more on the field because he is truly one of the best players I have ever played with in terms of skill, shooting, technique: he is absolutely amazing.
“I understood what Mancini and all the other coaches saw in him. At that time, we had Balotelli, [Edin] Dzeko [Sergio] Aguero and [Carlos] Tevez Look at that front line.
“I just wish he had stayed longer because you know a lot of people were throwing rocks at him and some of them were right for sure, but there was more than people saw and he was a really nice person off the field.” “
A notorious incident that infuriated Mancini was in a preseason friendly against the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2011. Balotelli was clean in the middle of the first half when he pirouetted and tried to shy away from a goal, only to put his parry attempt on pair.
Mancini was furious, replacing him minutes later with the couple arguing when the bench passed.
“I asked Mario about it and he said, ‘I’m telling you now. I heard a whistle,'” Richards recalled. “Even if he heard a whistle or not, we thought, ‘Just dial anyway.’ But he was adamant that he heard a whistle, so he stopped.
“But you never know Mario because it fits in with the rest of his antics. But I prefer the story that he was trying to take the mickey, it’s a better story.”
“People might think that he has wasted his talent, but that is not the case. He has been in some important clubs, Inter in his youth, Man City and Milan. When he returned there, he was incredible in that season.”
“It is not luckily how good he is. People say his attitude and antics are not great, but behind the scenes he works harder than most of the professionals I have worked with.”
“When he went to Liverpool, a lot of people were questioning the signing. I was like, ‘Come on Mario, this is the time to show people why you are Super Mario,’ but obviously it didn’t work.”
