English Premiership
Balotelli warned by City chief
2012-10-14 15:51
London - Manchester City's controversial striker Mario Balotelli has been warned he must set a better example with his behaviour on and off the pitch.
Balotelli has been involved in a number of high-profile and often bizarre incidents since joining City from Inter Milan in 2010 and Brian Marwood, the English Premier League champions' chief football operations officer, admits the Italian needs to present a better image of the club.
The 22-year-old has been involved in bust-ups with team-mates, threw a dart at a City youth team player and set off a firework in his own bathroom.
Earlier this month, Balotelli angered City manager Roberto Mancini by walking straight down the tunnel rather than staying to support his team-mates after being substituted and Marwood is disappointed with his behaviour.
"I think that it's important to make a good example," Marwood was quoted as saying by several English newspapers on Sunday.
"I think - and we all know who we are talking about - that you will get people within the system who do not show the right values and the right behaviour.
"In the main, we have a fantastic group of players here. I look at Pablo Zabaleta, Vincent Kompany, Joe Hart, Gareth Barry, Joleon Lescott.
"We have a lot of players who think and behave in the right way. You have to make sure they're the role models."