'Always late!' - Richards reveals Balotelli's massive fine bill at Man City

BetOdds Manchester City Premier League Chelsea Manchester City v Chelsea Mario Balotelli

The Italian striker struggled to be punctual while in England and paid the price dearly

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has revealed Mario Balotelli regularly fell victim to the club's fine policy and was docked wellÃ‚Â over Ã‚Â£100,000 (Ã¢Â‚Â¬116,000/$129,000) for his lateness.Ã‚Â

Balotelli, who is currently playing for Serie A side Brescia, spent three seasons at the EtihadÃ‚Â between 2010 and 2013.Ã‚Â

The now 29-year-old has regularly struggled with disciplinary issues throughout his career and that proved true at City too.Ã‚Â

With the club implementing a fine system for players thatÃ‚Â fell foul of set rules, Richards conceded Balotelli inevitably became a massive contributor.Ã‚Â

"Balotelli was always late so we used to give all our money [from fines] to charities, so by Christmas time we'd have Ã‚Â£100,000 to Ã‚Â£150,000 in there - just from Balotelli," Richards told BBC 5 Live Sport.Ã‚Â

"He'd be in the building, so like we'd have a meeting upstairs, and he'd just be downstairs relaxing. So he'd be in the building..."Ã‚Â

Fines are aÃ‚Â common part of most clubs and are usually enforced by the players themselves.

At City, Richards admitted he was often reluctant to dob teammates in but that Vincent KompanyÃ‚Â was a stickler for the rules.Ã‚Â

"It's difficult because you know Kompany,Ã‚Â he's busy isn't he?" Richards said.

"He always kept track of the fines and because I was sort of like vice-captain, one of the leaders in the dressing room, he'd tell me to take charge of it but I'm not going to tell the manager a player was late today or a player didn't put their bib the washing bin - I'm not going to do that.

"So it was only if Vincent Kompany caught you. So the lads were avoiding him. I'm not a snitch!

"You couldÃ‚Â appeal it [the fine]. You'd have to go with Kompany into the manager's office. He had a fine sheet logged of all the fines. He was like a school teacher, a head master, one of those guys when you see him you turn the other way.Ã‚Â

"I tried to be friends with everyone. I told himÃ‚Â [Balotelli] 'I'm going to let you off today', but with Balotelli it was like every other week, I could only do so much."Ã‚Â Ã‚Â Ã‚Â

2019-11-20 10:00:13

Comments

Send Your Comment

Download Application