Dark side of Super Mario’s world

MARIO BALOTELLI gave a whole new meaning to the term impact sub at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Things are never dull when Mario is around but his influence on Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Spurs could hardly have been more explosive if he’d stashed some of his fireworks in the opposition dugout.

A little over 25 minutes was all it took for Balotelli to leave his imprint on both the title race and Scott Parker, first incurring a yellow card for a tackle which even Paul Scholes would have deemed late, then putting the back of his boot into Parker’s head and, for that moment at least, getting away with it. He then kept his cool on the hottest spot on the pitch to put away the penalty which derailed Spurs’ comeback and left City in the driving seat at the top of the league.