Mario Balotelli
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| Mario Balotelli | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mario Balotelli Barwuah | |
| Date of birth | August 12, 1990 | |
| Place of birth | Palermo, Italy | |
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 21⁄2 in) | |
| Playing position | Striker | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Internazionale | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 2001-2006 2006-2007 |
Lumezzane Internazionale |
|
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2005-2006 2007- |
Lumezzane Internazionale |
2 (0) 11 (3) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Mario Balotelli Barwuah[1][2] (born August 12, 1990) is a football striker currently part of Serie A side F.C. Internazionale Milano.[3]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Balotelli was born in Palermo and is the son of Brescia-based Ghanaian immigrants, Thomas and Rose Barwuah. In 1993, at the age of three, Mario was entrusted to the Balotelli family by the Court of Brescia. They resided in Concesio, a town and comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. However, he is currently ineligible to obtain Italian citizenship, as his adoption was never made definitive.
According to the Law 91 of February 5, 1992 [4], Balotelli must wait until after his 18th birthday in order to request Italian citizenship.
[edit] Club career
With an average of more than a goal per game,[5] he is highly regarded as one of the most promising european prospects of the moment, being also featured on the national football press.[6][7]. At the age of 15, Balotelli was promoted to the senior side of his then-club Lumezzane, making his senior debut in a Serie C1 league match against Padova.
Following this, rumours linked him to several European clubs such as Fiorentina, [8]Manchester United and FC Barcelona; however he opted for Internazionale, who signed him to a 3-year deal, the maximum allowed for a youth player, on August 31, 2006.
Successively Balotelli showed his potential for F.C. Internazionale Milano under-17 Team, Allievi Nazionali, then joining the Primavera Under-20 team just at the age of 16, of which he quickly became a key player. He then scored a tie-breaking penalty in the Primavera league final in a 1-0 win over Sampdoria. These performances have prompted high praise[9] from several high-ranking people including Inter chairman Massimo Moratti. On December 16, 2007 Balotelli made his first team debut replacing David Suazo in a 2-0 Serie A win against Cagliari. Three days later, he featured in the starting lineup in a Coppa Italia match against Reggina Calcio and scored two goals in a 4–1 win.
On January 30, 2008 "SuperMario" Balotelli (as he is nicknamed, in reference to the eponymous videogame character) gained national news after he scored two goals against Juventus in the return leg of the Coppa Italia quarter-finals, being instrumental in a 3–2 away win for the nerazzurri. He then scored his first Serie A goal on April 6, 2008 in a 2–0 away win against Atalanta. He scored his second Serie A goal only a week later, after a one-on-one with Fiorentina goalkeeper Sébastien Frey. On May 11, 2008, in a home match against Siena, which would have given Inter the league title in case of a win, he first took a corner, assisting Vieira's goal, and then scored one himself, but it was not enough to give his team the scudetto as the game ended in a 2-2 draw and Roma won, hence the later reduced the gap to just 1 point behind the nerazzurri with only one game left.
[edit] International career
Due to Barwuah's legal problems, he did not manage to answer a number of call-ups received by Italian national Under 15 and Under 17 teams in the past, as he is still considered a Ghanaian immigrant.[10]
On August 7, 2007, five days before his 17th birthday, he received his first senior International call-up from Ghana Coach Claude Le Roy for a FIFA International friendly match against Senegal in the New Den Stadium in London, England on August 21, 2007[11], but declined the offer citing once again his willingness to play for Italy when he becomes eligible.[12] He also stated his willingness to represent Italy at the international level once he will be able to acquire an Italian passport.[13]
Italy under-21 coach Pierluigi Casiraghi recently stated his intention to call up Balotelli once he obtains the Italian citizenship.[14]
[edit] Honours
- Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti (Under-20 Italian Championship)
- Torneo di Viareggio
- Serie A
[edit] References
- ^ Mario Balotelli Barwuah (Italian). Calciatori.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-25.
- ^ MARIO BALOTELLI BARWUAH (Italian). CampionatoPrimavera.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-25.
- ^ "GIOVANILI: BALOTELLI E LA SUA STORIA", Inter.it, 2007-01-01. Retrieved on 2007-01-01.
- ^ "Italian citizenship", Comune di Torino, 2006-03-06. Retrieved on 2006-03-06.
- ^ Statistiche giocatore (Italian). Il Calcio Giovanile.it. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
- ^ "Inter, c'è un Fenomeno in casa", Alice Sport, 2006-11-16. Retrieved on 2006-11-16.
- ^ "Barcelona eyeing Inter Milan Allievi whiz Balotelli", Tribalfootball.com, 2006-10-09. Retrieved on 2006-10-09.
- ^ "Alla ricerca di giovani talenti: in arrivo a Firenze Balotelli dal Lumezzane", Fiorentinanews, 2006-06-06.
- ^ "Moratti: Who needs Pato?", Channel4, 2007-08-19. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
- ^ "Un prodigio ma non è azzurro", Avvenimenti, 2006-12-08. Retrieved on 2006-12-08. (Italian)
- ^ Ghana FA (2007-08-07). Le Roy names 20 for friendly. Ghanafa.org. Retrieved on 2007-08-22.
- ^ Stars to tame the lions today. The Statesman (2007-08-21). Retrieved on 2007-08-22.
- ^ "ESCLUSIVA TMW - Inter, il baby fenomeno Balotelli si racconta", TuttoMercatoWeb, 2007-06-01. Retrieved on 2007-07-19. (Italian)
- ^ Casiraghi: "Occhio a Messi noi partiamo da Nocerino" (Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport (2008-05-16). Retrieved on 2008-05-17.
[edit] External links
- (English) Personal website
- (Italian) Personal website
- (Italian) Career profile (from La Gazzetta dello Sport)
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