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Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 10:00 am
by ant london
teaser here

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17294193?

"Hi Mario, I'm Dan Walker from the BBC".

"Hello... wait... BBC? Journalist?"

"Yes".

"I do not like you already".

That was the conversation that accompanied my first meeting with Mario Balotelli, the Italian enigma who has excited and baffled in equal measure since stepping on to these shores.

Singer Noel Gallager and I had been waiting for the striker at Manchester City's training ground. We had arrived nice and early and been given a tour by Patrick Vieira, who is near the top of my "nicest Frenchmen I've met" list. He's just behind the guy who gave me an extra "boule" of chocolate ice cream last summer.

After the tour Noel challenged me to a game of darts on the board outside the "player care" area. I asked if he wanted to play Killer but he was unfamiliar with the rules so we decided to go for the classic 501. That was swiftly abandoned after it became clear our remedial maths was holding up play significantly.

Eventually we settled on "around the world" (or "around the clock" in some parts) which, for those of you who don't know, rewards the dartist who hits every number in order first, starting at one and ending at 20. I got off to a flyer, reaching seven in my first nine darts while Noel was struggling - even landing one "arrar" dangerously close to the foam-surround protecting the precious wall.

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[size=85]Noel Gallagher, a life-long City supporter, was a member of the band Oasis for over 16 years and now has his own band - Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Photo: BBC[/size]

Just as Noel was explaining that he was struggling because we were using a "cockney" dartboard and not a proper "Mancunian" one, our interviewee turned up.

The chat with Mario had taken the best part of five weeks to arrange. Balotelli simply does not talk publicly. As you will see when you watch the whole thing on Football Focus on Saturday, he has no time for the media. Manchester City are inundated with requests throughout the season but 99.9% of them are turned down because the player simply says "no".

It is odd for a footballer who rarely talks to be so captivating but Balotelli is not a normal footballer. Whether it is the rumours about dressing up as Santa Claus or paying for people's petrol, doing magic tricks for friends during a game, stamping on opponents, scoring with his shoulder, frequenting various nocturnal establishments, setting off fireworks or his "Why Always Me?" T-shirt, the man is a fascinating individual.

Like every other broadcaster in the known universe we had made several attempts to interview him throughout his time in England. About five weeks ago I called Manchester City's press department on the off-chance he had decided it was time to sit down in front of a camera. He hadn't.

Now it should be said that City are one of the most approachable, forward-thinking and accommodating clubs when it comes to player access. They are constantly doing things in the community, supporting charities and giving us the opportunity to talk to their highly paid stars. With that in mind, I went back to the club a few days later with a second proposal: What if we could get Noel Gallagher to do the interview? Again the answer was "No, I just don't think he's interested, but let me talk to Mario". This seemed like serious progress and a week or so later we were on the phone again.

"He'll do it," said the voice at the other end. "He likes Oasis and he'll talk to Noel... but only Noel". The only thing we had to do now was get Mario - who does not have a great track record when it comes to reliability - and Noel - the busiest man in showbusiness - together. Cue two weeks of conversations with agents, agencies, friends and friends of friends to find a suitable date and a suitable location.

The most important thing in our favour was that Gallagher loves Balotelli. He is currently on tour with High Flying Birds and dedicates a song to Mario each night. To Noel, Balotelli is a rock star who happens to wear a pair of shorts. Such was the former Oasis man's keenness to sit down with his favourite player that he was willing to change his entire schedule to get to Manchester last Friday.

I don't want to say too much about the interview other than that it was fascinating to watch. Balotelli comes across as a shy, slightly awkward individual, almost entirely unaware of the talent he has at his disposal and slowly coming to terms with the responsibility that accompanies his fame. When asked if he had a question for Noel at the end of the interview, he said: "Why do you like me so much?" He seemed baffled that someone could have that much affection for him. Noel's answer was about four minutes long!

You will hear him talk about Roberto Mancini, his own attitude, his need to mature, his goal celebrations, the return of Carlos Tevez, his background and his future in the game. Perhaps most interestingly of all, he deals with some of the many rumours and myths that accompany his activities in and around Manchester. Did he really attend mass on Christmas Eve and put £1,000 in the offering box? Did he take a bullied child back to school to deal with the oppressor? Does he drive around Manchester handing out money to onlookers and what is the real story behind the impromptu firework display at Balotelli Towers the night before the Manchester derby?

It is also worth saying that Mr Gallagher plays a sterling roll in all of this and brings the best out of the striker. There are a number of celebrities who "like" football because they feel it essential to their popularity, but Noel is a genuine supporter. Within minutes of meeting him, he was running through Vieira's career statistics and detailing where City had improved since the days of Danny Tiatto and Bob Taylor.

We will have a full-length interview with Noel coming up in a couple of weeks, but Saturday's Football Focus is all about Balotelli. I know it is easy to overhype these things but the stuff you will see was well worth the hundreds of phone calls, emails and logistical shenanigans it took to set up. I hope you enjoy it and don't forget you can always find me at twitter.com/danwalkerbbc

You'll be able to see Noel Gallagher's in-depth exclusive interview with Mario Balotelli on Saturday's Football Focus at 1215 GMT on BBC1.

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Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 10:27 am
by Mase
Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 10:41 am
by Mike J
Mase wrote:Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!

that would be a classic.

well looking forward to the noel/mario interview though

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 10:55 am
by Chinners
Mase wrote:Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!


Shame Mario is tee-total eh

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 11:10 am
by Mase
Chinners wrote:
Mase wrote:Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!


Shame Mario is tee-total eh


Next people will be telling us Clichy is actually right footed!

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 11:17 am
by ant london
Mase wrote:
Chinners wrote:
Mase wrote:Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!


Shame Mario is tee-total eh


Next people will be telling us Clichy is actually right footed!



that sounds like the kind of rubbish you'd get from Wikipedia

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 11:25 am
by ant london
[youtube]mdG_udOrCxc[/youtube]

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 12:17 pm
by Dubciteh
ant london wrote:
Mase wrote:
Chinners wrote:
Mase wrote:Would have been better if he'd met Liam. Now those two would make a pair going out on the lash!


Shame Mario is tee-total eh


Next people will be telling us Clichy is actually right footed!



that sounds like the kind of rubbish you'd get from Wikipedia


or the horses mouth!

Looking forward to this, two legends together!

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 4:20 am
by ant london

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 5:37 am
by john68
ant london wrote:Full interview here.......

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17311138


Thanks for linking that Ant, Mario is a hard bag to hold. Sometimes, you wabt to strangle him and sometimes you feel he is a little boy in need of a cuddle. He pisses me off but I just have to love him.

I think there is a touch of Father/Son relationship between him and Bob.

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 5:52 am
by ant london
Agree with that John...he does seem like a genuinely nice lad though. On pitch persona vs real personality appear totally contradictory.

In relation to Mancini's relationship with him. Yes, a lot of (justified) tough love with lots of arm around the shoulder and understanding it seems.

Interesting quotes here btw....Dzeko out of favour it would seem...

Roberto Mancini is targeting a record 99 points to guarantee Manchester City win their first championship since 1968.

Chelsea's 95 points in 2005 remains the record with only Manchester United and Chelsea claiming more than 90 – 91 each respectively – in other seasons.

City have 66 points to lead United by two and Mancini said: "Ninety-nine – if we get to that I know for sure we will win. We have 66 and there are 33 left available. I'm not good at mathematics but I know that if we get 99 we will be OK."

Mancini also said that Mario Balotelli, who came on for the closing stages of Thursday's 1-0 Europa League defeat at Sporting Lisbon, is in line to start every game between now and the end of the season. "Yes, I think so. When he played in Lisbon he did well for 20, 25 minutes."

Mancini has remained a staunch supporter of the Italian despite his misdemeanours, which included visiting a strip club in Liverpool the night before the win over Bolton Wanderers.

Asked if it was not time for him to repay this faith Mancini said: "I hope so but also last Saturday against Bolton he played well. He scored, missed a few but he did well. He will enjoy [the responsibility of leading the team in the title run-in]. But I think all the players are enjoying this moment."

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 6:21 am
by john68
There aredefinately 2 Marios, one extremely complex, thoughtful, defensive and untrusting and the other \mario who appears to almost childishly naive.
It is to Bob's credit that he has handled Mario so well and he certainly seems to have won the trust of Mario.

When Gillie was trying to work out a margin for error, I posted that there isn't any.
Try and look at it from the rag's point of view. They have reigned supreme for 20 years, seeing off the challenges of Blackburn, Newcastle, Leeds, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. It wasn't that long ago that City weren't even on their agenda, they saw us as something of a joke, on the few occasions we cropped up and the rest of the time we didn't register in their heads.

Never in their wildest imaginings did they ever think we would be challengersand it has taken them some time to get used to. At first we had the arrogant grins and flippant remarks. That changed to, and there came a nasty edge to what they said about us. Morerecently, they havegrudgingly admitted that we are not going away and I think the realisation, though not admission. thatthey understand that eventually we will overtake them.

For the rags to lose their crown would be a nightmare, to lose it to us would beseismic in their World. They will not give up their grip on the Prem trophy easily and if we are to win it, weare going to have fight them evfery inch to the end of the season. Nose to nose, 1st to blink loses.
Mancini understands that, the players will know that.....we need to understand that too.

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 1:35 pm
by ant london
Full interview for UK viewers now....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17288648?

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 1:43 pm
by Mase
Noel Gallagher didn't do him any favours though talking fast and using words that he's obviously not going to understand.

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 2:24 pm
by Dronny
What a guy, glad he's with us!

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 2:49 pm
by john68
Mase wrote:Noel Gallagher didn't do him any favours though talking fast and using words that he's obviously not going to understand.


I don't agree Mase mate. I think that, unlike the bog standard proffessional interviews we see, where the interviewer asks the regulation steriotypical questions to suit the media angle to draw out the story and the interviewee answers in a stultified and guarded manner because of lack of trust, this interview became a relaxed chat between mates.

This interview could have taken place in a gentleman's club, between two pals at 2.30am on a matchday.

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 6:19 pm
by PeterParker
I, for instance, still wait to see him do this in the next remaining games, this season:

[youtube]nasgriF1sdw[/youtube]

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 8:42 pm
by failsworthblue
Two things for me.

He respects Mancini and if he goes so will Mario.

Must be difficult for anybody to be abandoned by their parents and I suspect he will always carry this with him.

I have changed my mind on Mario , there is no other club in the world were he belongs more than us and for everthing he brings good and bad he is total box office.

Re: Mario Balotelli meets Noel - Football Focus

PostPosted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 9:58 am
by Wooders
what a prick lawro was at the end of that interview

the interview itself was brilliant though I felt as dissapointed as noel that some of the stories weren't true !