There are few players in the footballing world that have had such a controversial past as Mario Balotelli. He has had a relatively up and down career, playing for clubs like Inter Milan, Manchester City and Liverpool and Nice, before signing up for Marseille in January 2019.
From his on field antics to him setting his garage on fire, he always seems to attract attention towards himself and it seems that the Italian is at it again.
Last night Barcelona won 3-0 against Liverpool in a thrilling Champions League semi-final game. Their talisman Lionel Messi scored 2 goals in the match which helped them get one foot in the final.
The second of his goals was a typical Messi goal – a magical free kick from over 35 yards out. That goal also marked his 600th goal for Barcelona.
While millions were out congratulating Messi on his remarkable achievement, Balotelli took it one step further and took an audacious jibe at Cristiano Ronaldo.
He went on Instagram to congratulate Messi by saying that one must not compare Messi with Ronaldo anymore.
In his post, he doesn’t even refer to Ronaldo by his name, instead referring to him as Juve’s # 7.
Balotelli: “Messi phenomenon. For footballs best don’t compare him to Juve’s #7 anymore” pic.twitter.com/kDIBmfVC5F
— Siavoush Fallahi (@SiavoushF) May 1, 2019
The utter disrespect from Balotelli towards Ronaldo has no doubt received criticism from fans all around the world.
It should also be taken into account that Ronaldo reached the same feat just last month when he scored his 600th career goal in a 1-1 draw against Inter Milan.
Although he may not have helped Juventus clinch the Champions league this time around, Ronaldo himself is having a very good season, helping Juventus win their 6th consecutive title.
With both Ronaldo and Messi being the greatest and the most consistent footballers of the last decade, such an attack would most certainly not be appreciated within the footballing community.