Who is Mario Balotelli, the'former national team striker left without a team

At thirty-five years old, Mario Balotelli continues to be one of the most controversial and complex figures in Italian soccer. Born in Palermo on Aug. 12, 1990, to Ghanaian parents and raised in Brescia, Balotelli has experienced a sporting journey that has been both a journey through the lights and shadows of pure talent.

Emerging at a very young age with the Inter shirt, under Roberto Mancini and then Jose Mourinho, Balotelli emerged as one of the most promising prospects in European soccer. His physical power, technique and ability to decide important matches soon took him to the Premier League, where with Manchester City he won a historic title, contributing iconic plays – such as the assist for Agüero’s famous goal in 2012.

After experiences at AC Milan, Liverpool and in various teams between France, Turkey and Switzerland, Balotelli’s career became a succession of flashes and falls, of restarts and misunderstandings.

Balotelli’s parabola has been studded with controversial episodes, but also with moments that have marked the collective imagination: from the glacial penalty against Germany at the 2012 European Championships, to the famous “Why always me?” jubilation with City, to the returns to Italy loaded with expectations.

Today, however, the challenge is different: no longer to prove he is a champion, but to find a place in the soccer that counts, even accepting a less central role. Market rumors speak of possible destinations abroad – Brazil, Turkey, the United States – where his name remains synonymous with charisma and spectacle.