This week, Valentin Eysseric did not hesitate to balance his truths about Mario Balotelli’s behaviour, a little too nonchalant for his coach Lucien Favre and his teammates. A decisive passenger and striker on Sunday for the 25th match day of the French Ligue 1 against Rennes (2-2), the winger confirmed his remarks on his partner.
Far from regretting his media outing, the former AS Saint-Etienne player held a rather benevolent speech while still picking the Italian international. “My statements were sincere, I told the truth. It is true that it is a pity that he is a bit like that, that he lowers his head. We see him every day in training, he’s a great player, he has nothing to do with us even if I have respect for all my teammates he is really above” Eysseric told beIN Sports.
“He could have helped us win a game like that, where it’s often decisive. We know that the coach wants a lot of effort from his men and does not accept any relaxation, we saw with Mario Balotelli.” he added.
On last January 21, Balotelli claimed he was target of monkey noises after he accused Bastia fans of abusing him during his team’s 1-1 draw in the Ligue 1 campaign. The Italian posted a message on his Instagram page, saying the incident was a “real shame”.
“Yesterday the result against Bastia was right, we will work more and try to get our objective. The referee was good but I have a question for French people,” he wrote.
“Is it normal that Bastia supporters make monkey noise end “uh uh” for the whole game and no one of the ‘commissions discipline’ say nothing? So is racism LEGAL in France? Or only in Bastia?” he added.
Mario Balotelli (right) the most controversial players in football. (Source:www.espnfc.com)
In this race for the title in French Ligue 1, Nice are currently at 3rd place, now 5 points behind the top table leader Monaco, will nevertheless need a totally invested Balotelli. In their last Ligue 1 match, Nice were held 2-2 by Rennes on February 12. With Mario Balotelli absent because of a kneey injury, Lucien Favre’s side went behind to a chipped finish from former West Ham midfielder Morgan Amalfitano.
