da esoccer bet： A decade ago, the Italian appeared destined to become a footballing superstar, but he is now struggling in Switzerland after one misstep after another
da pinnacle： It remains one of the most iconic images in sporting history. Mario Balotelli, stone-faced, shirt off, fists clenched, muscles bulging – a picture of defiance. Balotelli himself even commissioned an artist to immortalise the moment with a life-sized statue.
In fairness, he wasn't the only one enamoured with the iconic pose. FIFA added the forward's 'flex' at Euro 2012 to the very next edition of its video game series, while Subbuteo rolled out a special-edition figurine.
At the time, everyone was enthralled by 'Super Mario'. He was featured on the front page of magazine, joining an exclusive club of Italian idols that included Luciano Pavarotti, Silvio Berlusconi, Sophia Loren and Giorgio Armani.
labelled him 'The Most Interesting Man in the World' and, to be fair, he wasn't far off.
Getty'I will forever play with the Italian national team'
Balotelli was young, black, talented and utterly unafraid to speak his mind.
His emergence at the European Championship felt like a seminal moment in Italy's struggle with racial integration. As the son of Ghanaian immigrants raised by a couple from Brescia, he didn't just have the potential to become a footballing superstar, he also had it in him to become one of the most influential sportsmen of his generation.
Kids of every colour wanted to be like Balotelli. His distinctive mohawk was the most requested haircut in Italy in 2012, while his mere presence in the national team provoked a long overdue debate on national identity.
"I am Italian," Balotelli famously declared after being belatedly granted citizenship after turning 18. "I feel Italian. And I will forever play with the Italian national team."
And yet, a decade on, Balotelli is viewed as an embarrassment because of his 'bad' behaviour, a sad symbol of the pitfalls of fame.
AdvertisementGetty'I think that chapter is closed'
He's still only 32 and yet he hasn't played for his country since 2018 – which is staggering for two reasons. Firstly, Italy is suffering from a shocking shortage of strikers. Secondly, the current coach is one of the few men in football to have ever gotten the best out of Balotelli.
But when Roberto Mancini was recently asked about bringing Italy's prodigal son back into the fold, he replied: "I think that chapter is closed."
And one can see why the Azzurri boss no longer wants anything to do with Balotelli. He's been given more than enough chances to prove his worth over the past decade, and time and time again, he's disappointed.
He's had eight clubs in the past nine years, and only at Nice, during two seasons under Lucien Favre between 2016 and 2018, did he really look like getting his career back on track.
'We expected more from Mario'
What's infuriating, though, is that the talent is still there.
Just last year, during his time with Super Lig side Adana Dermirspor, a video went viral of him scoring the most audacious rabona after several stepovers.
It was one of five goals scored by Balotelli in the same game. And yet his time in Turkey ended prematurely and in predictable fashion, with Balotelli offloaded at the start of the current campaign after a touchline bust-up with coach Vincenzo Montella, who had to be restrained from confronting his compatriot.
"I can only say that we expected more from Mario," Montella said, echoing sentiments expressed by countless coaches during Balotelli's career.
"There are things that can happen at the end of a game. Maybe the adrenaline makes you say certain things. But, for me, he's finished here."
GettyA 'lifestyle choice' turns sour
He could soon be finished at Sion, too. It certainly doesn't bode well for the future when your own club's fans are burning your jersey in the stands for a perceived lack of effort…
Balotelli only moved to Switzerland in August, just after his very public row with Montella, but 18 league appearances yielded just six goals as Sion suffered relegation, with his performances and behaviour doing nothing to challenge the widely held view that Balotelli's heart is no longer in it.
Even when he first arrived, the attacker said that joining Sion was a "lifestyle choice" – so the sight of him being helped out of a nightclub in Lausanne shortly after signing didn't really soothe fears that he was more interested in enjoying himself off the field than on it.
Sion sporting director Barth Constantin has admitted that the signing of Balotelli was a "mistake", while recent reports have detailed the striker's off-field antics having included turning up drunk to a winter training camp, refusing to come on during match late in the season, and accidentally punching Constantin while fighting during a local carnival.
Balotelli is no fool, though. He is acutely aware that he's "not an easy guy to deal with". He knows that he's made a lot of mistakes. He still bitterly regrets throwing his shirt to the ground in front of Inter fans at San Siro all the back in 2010.
“I admit it ruined everything and I was wrong," he recently told the podcast Muschio Selvaggio. "But I was 19 years old. I couldn't understand why the stadium was jeering me for losing the ball a couple of times and I returned home in tears that night."