Former Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli has opened up about one of his clashes with Inter Milan manager Jose Mourinho during their time together at the Italian club. He stated that the Portuguese manager threw him off the team bus after the argument and that the current AS Roma boss was not an easygoing person.
Balotelli is largely regarded as one of the most controversial figures in the world of football. Throughout his career, he has clashed with numerous managers, including ‘the special one’ Jose Mourinho. However, there is no need to tell a tale that the former Inter, Real Madrid and Man United manager shared a personality much similar to that of Balotelli.
‘Jose Mourinho is not an easy guy’ – Balotelli on heated row with ex-manager
The enigmatic Italy international striker has made numerous headlines throughout his career, with many of them resulting from clashes with coaches who found him difficult to control. Jose Mourinho fit into that group, and working with two explosive individuals at San Siro always held the prospect of pyrotechnics.
Mario Balotelli opened up about a heated confrontation he had with Mourinho while on an away trip on the Muschio Selvaggio podcast. He admitted that the brawl caused him to be kicked from the team bus and that he had to rent a car to get home. According to the former Italy international:
“Mou is not an easy guy to deal with, much like me. I had a somewhat particular relationship, a good relationship. We have two personalities that are difficult to manage, we often clashed, but it was a paternal confrontation, between father and son.
“One time before a trip to Catania, we had an argument on the bus taking us to the airport. He made me get off the bus and I had to return home with a car. I’ve done a lot of s*** in my life, but I’ve hid it from him. Mourinho made the difference, he brings out the best in you, he makes you angry and you react and put all your adrenaline out on the pitch.”
Mario Balotelli played 71 games for Inter Milan under Jose Mourinho, scoring 21 goals and providing 12 assists and lifting the famous treble as well in the 2009/10 season. Under Mourinho, Balotelli was not at his most productive. As a result, the Portuguese frequently kept the striker on the bench, particularly in big games.
The Italian may be irritated by Mourinho’s treatment of him, but he cannot deny the impact the ex-Chelsea boss made on his trophy case. Balotelli has won a total of ten titles throughout his career, half of which came under Mourinho between 2008 and 2010. In the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons, he won consecutive Serie A titles, scoring 17 goals and assisting seven times in 48 games. He won the Champions League in 2009-10, with a goal and an assist in eight games.
Balotelli went on to play for a host of European clubs including Manchester City, AC Milan, Liverpool, OGC Nice, Marseille, Brescia, Monza and Adana Demirspor. The 36-cap Italy international is now 32 years old and plays for FC Sion in Switzerland, but with Serie A and Champions League titles to his name, he believes he can keep playing for “at least another four years”.