By Arthur Virgo
The agent of Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli has insisted his client will remain with the club despite his recent absence from the first team.
The Italy international has not featured since being substituted during City’s 3-2 defeat to Manchester United on December 9 and has been persistently linked with a move to Milan in recent weeks.
However, his representative, Mino Raiola, has moved to clarify the situation, telling Corriere dello Sport: “Mario will not move now because there is no reason to change team.
“He’s not playing because he was sick and because there have been discussions with Mancini. However, the situation is resolving.”
Raiola went on to explain that Balotelli hopes to regain the trust of manager Roberto Mancini and has put his past mistakes behind him.
He added: “Taking him away from Manchester would be the easiest option. But he will stay at City, although this may seem like the most complicated thing.
“In the past he has made some mistakes, but lately people talk negatively about him only for his affair with Raffaella Fico.
“Balotelli needs to regain his place on the field and regain the confidence from the team. He needs a club that believes in him and he will do anything to deserve this trust.”
