Balotelli Article

[yankblue]

I was going to stick this in the first Balotelli thread I came across, but I didn't see one in the first page and a half so being the lazy bastard I am I just gave up and started a new one.

Here's an article on our Mario, focusing on the character and not the footballer. It's a long one but worth a read I think, thought I'd share. Even if you don't read or like the article, the clip in there is worth watching.

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7183014/how-mario-balotelli-became-mario-balotelli" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/718 ... -balotelli</a>

Oh it is from an American sports site so apologies in advance for the use of the word soccer =]

 

[MAXXI]

I was going to stick this in the first Balotelli thread I came across, but I didn't see one in the first page and a half so being the lazy bastard I am I just gave up and started a new one.

Here's an article on our Mario, focusing on the character and not the footballer. It's a long one but worth a read I think, thought I'd share. Even if you don't read or like the article, the clip in there is worth watching.

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7183014/how-mario-balotelli-became-mario-balotelli" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/718 ... -balotelli</a>

Oh it is from an American sports site so apologies in advance for the use of the word soccer =]

Good reads.

 

[Lucky13]

Decent read , the phrase " atomization of utd " will be used today.

 

[Q8-Blue]

nice article and good find OP

 

[charliebigspuds]

enjoyed that, sums him up, good find.

 

[gaudinho's stolen car]

Top stuff.

 

[kippax_blueboy]

Good read

Well observed and well written.

I liked this line:

"For the next few days, people who like getting mad about sports got mad, and only a tiny minority of fans on the Internet were left to ask, in their squeakiest little Oliver Twist voices, whether trying to do something entertaining in a meaningless friendly was really so horribly vile"


Has City ever had a player like Mario with the potential for quite so much media attention.

My fear he will get caught up in the celebrity circus.

The Club and Mancini need to manage this, keep him focussed in playing football.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

Good read

Well observed and well written.

I liked this line:

"For the next few days, people who like getting mad about sports got mad, and only a tiny minority of fans on the Internet were left to ask, in their squeakiest little Oliver Twist voices, whether trying to do something entertaining in a meaningless friendly was really so horribly vile"


Has City ever had a player like Mario with the potential for quite so much media attention.

My fear he will get caught up in the celebrity circus.

The Club and Mancini need to manage this, keep him focussed in playing football.

We've never had such a fruitcake before AND who is so talented at the same time. Most people expect some measure of conformity, even from pro footballers. What the hell, as long as Mario doesn't hurt people, engage in the illegal, injure himself, he'll do for me.

 

[r.soleofsalford]

Good read

Well observed and well written.

I liked this line:

"For the next few days, people who like getting mad about sports got mad, and only a tiny minority of fans on the Internet were left to ask, in their squeakiest little Oliver Twist voices, whether trying to do something entertaining in a meaningless friendly was really so horribly vile"


Has City ever had a player like Mario with the potential for quite so much media attention.

My fear he will get caught up in the celebrity circus.

The Club and Mancini need to manage this, keep him focussed in playing football.

We've never had such a fruitcake before AND who is so talented at the same time. Most people expect some measure of conformity, even from pro footballers. What the hell, as long as Mario doesn't hurt people, engage in the illegal, injure himself, he'll do for me.

i think stan bowles could have run him close ;)

 

[more lazy than useless]

A good read. I've come across a couple of good articles on that site before (probably all linked from bluemoon).

This was interesting on Balo from a couple of weeks ago;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/oct/17/five-things-learned-premier-league

"Maybe it's time to take Balotelli seriously
They had a great laugh on the Match of the Day sofa. Alan Hansen wouldn't include Mario Balotelli in his side "when it comes to the crunch" (which side is this and when are their crunch games?) while Alan Shearer "guarantees" the Italian will get sent off further down the line.

Balotelli may partly have himself to blame for being treated like a pantomime character but there comes a point when his on-field actions are what he must be judged on. After all, Wayne Rooney is likely to get himself sent off again at some point in the future but for some reason that's not funny.

The Italian opened the scoring against Aston Villa with a fine improvised overhead kick to score his fourth goal in as many games. On top of that Balotelli generally made a nuisance of himself throughout at the Etihad, twice drawing saves from Shay Given with curling efforts from the inside-left channel.

But because he put his finger to his lips in front of Villa fans who were jeering him for losing his footing and returned to celebrate his goal in the vicinity of the away section he is seen as something of a liability. A former Chelsea manager used to do that kind of thing but was often remarked to "be a breath of fresh air".

What would genuinely be a breath of fresh air would be if Balotelli's increasingly assured displays become the focal point rather than his portrayal as some sort of El Hadji Diouf meets Krusty the Clown figure."