From bad boy to altar boy, Balotelli needs to re-discover balance

Roberto Mancini cannot possibly have imagined he would see this sentence in print; but Mario Balotelli, the man regarded as probably the maddest, baddest and most dangerous man to know in the Premier League, played for Italy against Croatia last night and left many onlookers wondering if he could do with being, well... a bit more nasty.

The ‘Why Always Me’ character, loved and hated in equal measure across England, has been replaced by a respectful, sanitised version in international football.

Although he showed flashes of class in a 1-1 draw he also wasted chances and quickly ran out of energy as the Italians threw away a first-half lead to leave their chances of qualification in the balance.