'Shameful' PSG cannot buy a team, says Balotelli

Nice forward Mario Balotelli has criticised Paris Saint-Germain for their "shameful" Champions League exit to Real Madrid.

Paris Saint-Germain deserved their Champions League defeat to Real Madrid as they have signed great individuals but not a team, according to Mario Balotelli.

Unai Emery's PSG were beaten 5-2 on aggregate by European champions Madrid in the last 16, coming up well short as record signing Neymar missed the second leg with a fractured foot.

And while Nice forward Balotelli concedes that Neymar's absence played a part, he was not impressed by PSG, calling their exit "shameful".

"PSG are just like Guingamp [to me] - it's another Ligue 1 club," he told Telefoot. "I do not care about PSG. Marseille and Lyon are also good teams.

"I have never watched PSG, only against Real Madrid. They deserved to lose. It is always shameful to see a team like PSG eliminated in the last 16, but Madrid were better.

"You can buy great players but not a team. Neymar is one of the top three players in the world, though, and, when you have one of the three best players in the world on your team, it changes the game."

Balotelli played the full 90 minutes against PSG in Ligue 1 on Sunday as Allan Saint-Maximin scored in a 2-1 defeat, and the former AC Milan striker believes his Nice team-mate is capable of playing for a club like Madrid.

"[Saint-Maximin] has all the potential to [play for Madrid]," he said. "With his qualities on the ball, he can go past players every time. When he does not, it's just due to a lack of concentration. His potential is huge."