By Chris Wright
There’s no sitting on the fence with Mario Balotelli vis-a-vis the preemptive racism storm a-brewing ahead of Euro 2012. The new Italian No. 9 – who has endured more than his fair share of abuse in the past – has vowed to ‘kill anyone’ who throws bananas at him in the street in Poland and/or Ukraine, telling France Football:
“If [racism] does happen I would leave the pitch and go home. Racism is unacceptable to me, I cannot bear it.
“We are in 2012, it can’t happen. If someone throws a banana at me in the street, I will go to prison because I will kill him.”
Something something John Terry something something Italy something something latter stages something something.
But wait, there’s more from our Mario:
“I think I am a genius, but not a rebel. I have my life, my world, I do what I want, without annoying anyone. I believe I am more intelligent than the average person.
“The talent God gave me is beautiful and wonderful, but it is difficult because you are always facing other people keen to judge you.
“There are few people with such talent, so there are few able to judge what I am doing.”
We’ll let you draw your own conclusions from that second batch of quotes. We ain’t sayin’ nuthin’.