Marseille coach Rudi Garcia says striker Mario Balotelli does not deserve the reputation he has carried through his career.
Balotelli joined OM from French rivals Nice in the January transfer window and has already made a mark on the pitch at the Velodrome with three goals in five Ligue 1 outings.
Related: Balotelli To Stay With Nice
The 28-year-old Italian has been portrayed as a difficult character throughout his career, largely by the media, while former managers Jose Mourinho and Roberto Mancini have described him as “unmanageable” and “crazy” respectively.
At Nice there were concerns regarding his work ethic, having apparently reported back to training two weeks late and overweight ahead of the current campaign, but Garcia has had no problems whatsoever with the former Manchester City striker.
“I am very surprised at the character of this player, who is happy and smiling, and I find him fairly balanced, quite wise,” he said, as reported by RMC.
“It’s a great surprise to see him as calm, from time to time he makes mistakes but it’s a great surprise to see him relatively calm on the terrain, quite sober, at odds with what I had heard about his relationships with referees or opponents.”
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