ROME, January 18 – Jose Mourinho is impolite and disrespectful according to his former player Mario Balotelli.
Speaking in a new sports pull-out in Tuesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport called Extra Time, Manchester City striker Balotelli hits out at the Real Madrid coach.
The pair were at Inter Milan in the previous two seasons but fell out on several occasions, usually over Balotelli’s attitude.
Mourinho even once banished him from the first team picture for seven matches but Inter finished the season with an unprecedented treble in Italian football, although with Balotelli mostly warming the bench.
"Mourinho is the best coach in the world but as a man he has a lot to learn about politeness and respect," said the 20-year-old who expressed his preference for his current coach Roberto Mancini, whom he also worked under at Inter before Mourinho joined.
"He’s the most important coach I’ve had. Soon he’ll be the best in the world," he added.
"As a man he’s 10km ahead of Mourinho."
Balotelli, who has never been shy about blowing his own trumpet — last month after winning a best young player in the world award he claimed he was better than everyone except Lionel Messi — also hit out at AC Milan president and Italy Prime Minister for having described Antonio Cassano as the best talent in Italy.
"Either Berlusconi’s made a mistake or he doesn’t know Balotelli very well," he said.
And Balotelli also hit out at the English press, who earlier this month reported that he had cheated on glamour model girlfriend Sophie Reade with her best friend Faye-Evette Betts.
"English football is as far ahead in the stands as it is behind in its newspapers," he said.
"All I can say about Sophie is that I saw her once and then she started hassling me with messages while one of her friends is much more interesting."
Balotelli, who reportedly had a scrap with team-mate Jerome Boateng earlier this season described City’s Adam Johnson as having great technique and Emmanuel Adebayor as being the most fun.
He also described AC Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic as being from another planet and said former team-mate Wesley Sneijder and not Messi should have won the Ballon D’Or.
And in a final slap in the face, he targeted his former team, saying he hoped Napoli and not Inter would win Serie A.
"Instinctively I’d say Milan, if I think about it a bit I’d say, but Inter gave me a lot.
"If I keep thinking then I’d decide, I hope Napoli win, I’d like to play with (Edinson) Cavani."
