Balotelli Target of No Hoods Policy

Mario Balotelli has had another negative brush with authorities, after he was thrown out of a local shopping centre for wearing a hoodie.

The 21-year-old was shopping at Manchester's Trafford Centre with friends when he was approached by a security guard who informed him that the centre operated a "no hoods" policy.

The Italy striker refused the guard's request to uncover his head and was promptly shown the door.

Balotelli claimed he didn't want people recognising him while spending time with his friends.

The incident came on the same day Balotelli spoke to the media insisting that he has grown up this season and less than a week since he was spotted at a strip club for which he was fined two weeks' wages.

The 21-year-old has made a big impact on the Barclays Premier League this season and is into double figures for title-chasing City, something he puts down to an improved effort on the training ground.

"This year I have already scored 14 goals and a pair of penalties, and the intensity and effort I put into training this year, are not comparable to last season," he toldLa Gazzetta dello Sport.

I have grown up, I have understood certain things."

Balotelli was pictured leaving a strip club less than 48 hours before their Premier League clash with Bolton Wanderers last weekend.

The 21-year-old retained his place in the starting line-up and even scored in the 2-0 win, but afterwards his boss Roberto Mancini confirmed his anger and stated he would be fining his striker.

Mancini has even admitted that he would like to see Balotelli settle and maybe even get married to try and curb some of his antics, but the youngster insists that is not on the cards just yet.

"Do I think to marry? For me it is not soon," he said.

"When you find the right person, it may be the time. Raffaella (his girlfriend) is the best thing that ever happened to me. It gives me peace of mind, she understands me when I make a mess.

"How did she take my evening at the strip club? Well I'd have got angry if she went to a male strippers' club with her friends."

He admits he is yet to talk to Mancini about the incident.

"I have not done anything wrong at the strip club, even though I was wrong to go there two days before a game.

"The fine? I don't know yet. I have to talk with Mancini."

Balotelli's issues off the field have seen him dropped from the Italian national side, with a warning from coach Cesare Prandelli that he needed to improve his behaviour.

Prandelli's stance was even backed by Mancini and Balotelli admits he was hurt to be left out.

"The exclusion from the national team? I was very disappointed," he said.

"I often say in the locker room: Barcelona? Real Madrid? For me the most fascinating shirt is that of my national team, for the feeling that I want to represent Italy.

"I'm sorry to have lost a friendly match in Genoa (against USA). There is a code of ethics and I accept it, although I don't think I deserved it, I had done nothing wrong.

"But to dissolve the misunderstanding, I sent an SMS to Prandelli. I assured him that I feel calm and I'm training well. Then I said thank you once again, because he always had confidence in me."

Balotelli Faces Maximum Fine

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini said Mario Balotelli will face the maximum permissible fine if he broke a club curfew before the win over Bolton.

The Italian striker scored in a 2-0 win that leaves City five points ahead of second-placed Manchester United.

But his manager will investigate reports of a night out on Thursday.

"I didn't read the newspapers," Mancini said. "Tomorrow I will speak with him. If everything is true I will do the maximum fine that I can do."

Balotelli's goal was his second since returning from a four-match suspension after an alleged stamp on Tottenham's Scott Parker last month and his 14th goal of the season.

"I'm really disappointed," said Mancini when asked about the 21-year-old's most recent alleged transgression.

"But I need to speak to him because I don't know what or when it has happened. I will [stick with him] because he's a good player but, if it is true, I will speak with him tomorrow and decide about the fine.

"Maybe if he goes to bed earlier, maybe he scores three goals [against Bolton]. Maybe he missed four goals for this reason."

Balotelli joined City in a £24m deal from Inter Milan in the summer of 2010 but has been involved in a number of controversies on and off the pitch.

He has been sent off three times, was unable to continue after suffering an allergy to the grass in a game in Kiev, threw a dart at a reserve team player and escaped injury after a firework was let off in his house.

With closest rivals Manchester United facing a tough trip to third-placed Spurs on Sunday, Mancini was pleased to gain another win as he rested David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Micah Richards after a round of international friendlies in midweek.

But the Italian said his team needed to be more clinical.

"I'm happy for our performance. When you play a team fighting against relegation it is difficult," he added.

"We missed five or six chances to score in 10 minutes. This can be a problem sometimes. We were unlucky because their goalkeeper did very well and maybe we should pay more attention.

"When we have a chance to score it's better to score quickly."

City to Report Porto Fans Racism

Manchester City claimed that Mario Balotelli and Yaya Toure were racially abused during their UEFA Europa League clash against Porto, media reports said.

Barclays Premier League leaders City came from a goal down to beat the defending champions 2-1 at the Estadio do Drago, but the BBC reported that club officials had informed them that the two black players had been targeted by sections of the home crowd.

After the final whistle, City manager Roberto Mancini said he had heard nothing unusual.

"I didn't hear the noise, because I was concentrating on the game," he said.

But it was claimed that after the game Balotelli had told a City official that he was subjected to racial abuse from the stands. The club then announced that they intended to report it to UEFA.

Mancini added later: "I didn't hear (any racist chanting), sorry."

"I think Mario Balotelli and Yaya Toure are too strong (to be affected by it)."

Toure confirmed he had "heard something" from the stands.

"That's why we all like the Premier League, because it never happens there," he told Sky Sports.

"Maybe in foreign countries they don't expect black players. I think in future it will be okay, they will change their minds and the game will become more open."

"Football is football and the fans come to enjoy the game, and we don't want things like this to happen."

Balotelli Could Leave City

Mario Balotelli's agent insists he has a duty of care to the Manchester City striker that would involve him forcing a move away from Manchester City were he to feel he had been unfairly treated in the game, in the wake of his four match ban for stamping on Scott Parker.

Balotelli's Italian agent, Mino Raiola, suggested in an interview with a radio station in the striker's homeland, that he feels there could be a conspiracy against him.

"Mario can't be banned for four games," said Raiola. "He wasn't balanced and there was also a push from Modric.

"It is not an intentional foul because Mario doesn't want to hurt anyone, he didn't see Parker, that's all.

"I want to be balanced but I'm worried because when English players are involved in more serious things, nothing happens, whereas when foreigners are involved, such as Balotelli or Kompany, they were treated harder.

"If I find that there is something strange against Balotelli, my duty is to protect and then take him away.

"In this case I would speak with City, I'd ask them Balotelli's price and would look for the best team for him, as there are only six or seven teams he can play for.

"I talked to Mario who said he is happy to stay in England, but he does not understand certain things and they sadden him."

Raiola also suggested referee Howard Webb was lying to cover his own back when he reported that he did not see the incident during the game.

"The referee saw everything, because he spoke to Mario after the action," Raiola said.

"So in my opinion, this referee must be banned for life because he didn't tell the truth.

"The TV images show that he is really close to the action, how can he say he didn't see it?

"What was he doing? He says he didn't see it, only to defend himself."

Balotelli Charged by FA

Manchester City's Mario Balotelli has been charged with violent conduct by the Football Association after appearing to stamp on Scott Parker.

The incident occurred in City's 3-2 win over Tottenham, with Balotelli scoring a late penalty to win Sunday's match.

Following a dismissal earlier this season Balotelli, 21, faces a four-match ban, but any unsuccessful appeal could result in a longer suspension.

Joleon Lescott will not be punished after a clash with Younes Kaboul.

Manchester City defender Lescott caught Kaboul in the face with his forearm in a separate incident at Etihad Stadium.

Italy striker Balotelli, who has until 1800 GMT on Wednesday to respond to the charge, came on as a 65th-minute substitute against Spurs.

He was booked for a foul on Benoit Assou-Ekotto but, after escaping punishment from referee Howard Webb following his clash with Parker, the striker was fouled by Ledley King in the final minute of added time and converted the resulting penalty.

If he pleads guilty, Balotelli will miss Wednesday's Carling Cup semi-final second leg against Liverpool at Anfield.

However, should the Italian international decide to appeal he will be available for that tie, with a hearing likely to take place later this week.

The normal punishment for violent conduct is a three-match suspension but Balotelli was sent-off in the league match at Liverpool in November so would incur an additional one-game ban.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp was incensed that Balotelli was not dismissed in Sunday's crucial Premier League encounter for what he termed a "blatant" foul.

"It is not the first time he has done that and I am sure it won't be the last," Redknapp said.

"I have got my own opinions but I don't like people kicking other people in the head on football pitches. I don't think it's wrong to say that.

"Why you should backheel someone in the head when they are lying on the floor is beyond me. It's not a nice thing to do.

"He reacts to challenges like that at times. Scott has got a cut on his head."

Spurs, who fought back from two goals down to draw level in a gripping contest, could have moved within two points of City with a victory.

But City's controversial win took them eight points ahead of the Londoners and maintained a three-point advantage over second-placed Manchester United.

Balotelli joined City in a £24m dealfrom Inter Milan in the summer of 2010 but has been involved in a number of controversies on and off the pitch.

He has been sent off three times, was unable to continue after suffering an allergy to the grass in Kiev, threw a dart at a reserve team player and escaped injury after a firework was let off in his house.

City's Sergio Aguero defended his strike partner, however, insisting there is a big difference between the public perception of Balotelli and the player he sees every day.

"Firstly we all know what a fantastic player he is. But those of us who are really close to Mario know that off the field he's a really good lad," the Argentina international said.

"Like a lot of players he has his own idiosyncracies here and there. You know him as a player - what you see on the field. But I know he's a lovely lad."