Superagent Mino Raiola slams Klopp treatment of Balotelli

Italy striker Mario Balotelli signed a one-year contract to move to Nice from Liverpool on transfer deadline day and Raiola fired a parting shot at his client's former club and manager Jurgen Klopp.

Published : Sep 03, 2016 17:00 IST , Liverpool

Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli
Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli
lightbox-info

Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp acted like a "piece of s***" towards Mario Balotelli at Liverpool, the striker's agent Mino Raiola has claimed.

Balotelli signed a one-year contract to move to Nice from Liverpool on transfer deadline day and Raiola fired a parting shot at his client's former club.

Raiola insisted Liverpool accepted Balotelli had been treated poorly after the forward was forced to train away from the first team and the agent said Klopp is "not a good coach".

"In the end, the higher-ups at Liverpool admitted that Klopp was wrong," Raiola told Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I'm not trying to judge him as a coach — although, for me, he's not a good coach — but he didn't understand that Balotelli is, whatever else, a person.

"Mario has been exemplary. He never complained about training alone. To say that it was wrong of Klopp would be an understatement, he was a piece of s*** about it," said the agent who also represents Manchester United's new recruits Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Balotelli is targeting a recall to the Italian national team after turning down offers from around Europe to sign for Nice, Raiola revealed.

"There were alternatives in Italy, in Germany, in England, in Spain, but we chose Nice," Raiola said. "The French league is interesting and there is attacking football.

"The national team is a theme that Mario likes a lot but today he should focus on Nice and their performances. If the national team needs him, well, we will do other things, but for now he must think only about returning to the field," said Raiola.

Balotelli has made 33 appearances for Italy but the 26-year-old has not featured for the national team since 2014.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment