‘Crazy Mario could be one of the best’

ON a weekend in which Manchester City’s derby preparations were interrupted by an impromptu fireworks display, it was hardly surprising that Mario Balotelli should, for an hour at least, take centre stage of his team’s extraordinary victory at Old Trafford.

However, when the dust — literally —has settled on Balotelli’s latest off-field reckless stupidity, the Italian forward would do well to head the words of his manager Roberto Mancini, who insists he could become one of the world’s true elite if he were to eradicate such behaviour.

The fire brigade was called to Balotelli’s Cheshire home in the early hours of Saturday morning after the player and a friend set fire to the house by letting off fireworks in the bathroom.