Yesterday Manchester City confirmed the £19m sale of Italian footballer Mario Balotelli. He was a player that brought much more than just talent to the English Premier League, but also an arrogance that has not been seen in this nation since Eric Cantona. So that brings me to the question, was it just Man City who are losing the services of Balotelli to their game?
The past few years, has seen scandals regarding Racism in the British game, an increase in diving in the sport, and also the appointment of Roy Hodgson as the England manager. All these events brought somewhat of a dark cloud over the English game, but a cloud that was lifted by the stories like Balotelli nearly burning down his house with fireworks the day before the Manchester derby, the game where he uncovered his 'Why always me?' t-shirt. He brought somewhat of a fun factor to the EPL, and was a man that you couldn't but love. Unless you are a United supporter of course.
Balotelli never seemed to reach his full potential in England, in which he described his first full season with Man City as 'shit'. We he said during a live interview, after the FA Cup Final, which millions of children would have been watching. That is Mario Balotelli summed up. However no one can deny that there has been glimpses of a world class footballer in his time in Manchester, and at just 22 years old, have City made a mistake. If he plays as well for AC Milan as he did for Italy in their Euro 2012 semi final against Germany, then Mancini and the owners of Manchester City will be left red faced. Surely at such a young age, his best football is to come, and maybe even a loan spell in Italy would have helped to quicken the young Italian's development.
Is Mario Balotelli a 'Pre-Madonna'? Yes. Does he have a hot head? Yes. But does he have a mountain of potential? You can bet your bottom dollar he does. But it has to be asked if Balotelli saw a man he had described as his 'dad'  arriving in a skin tight body suit to work every morning, flicking his long hair back in the Manchester wind, Mario, along with many would have lost their head a long time ago. Mancini from the very start of Balotelli's City career tried to smother this young man and make him change his lifestyle, a lifestyle which has been publisised widely in the UK press. I feel that this was Mancini's first mistake. When investing £20m in a young talent such as Balotelli, why was the first thing Mancini wanted to do was change Balotelli's attitude. He was 19 years old, and at the rate he was progressing, he should have been nurtured to fulfill his potential, instead of bombarded with pressure from the get go at Man City.
Balotelli will unforunately be remembered by many for his on pitch antics, and training ground bust ups, but he was a young man that provided great entertainment to the UK public in his two and a half years at Manchester City. Personally when I had heard of Balotelli's transfer news to AC Milan, I was hoping that it was just one of Mario's pranks, as in the summer of 2012 the Italian man joked, "I can't wait for transfer deadline day. I'm just going to drive to as many stadiums as possible just to confuse journalists."
 Hopefully we haven't seen the last of Mario Balotelli in the English Premier League. He is a man that will missed by many including myself, and the homeless people outside Manchester casinos.