Nice Reading
interview posted in FI site with Personal coach of MB about how is he redeeming his career
Is it never too late ?
Sunday June 10 2018
Balotelli's personal coach speaks out
By Football Italia staff
Mario Balotelli’s personal coach has talked about newfound maturity, how the Nice star is misunderstood and must be “a lion in the Savannah, not a zoo or circus.”
The striker has reached a new level to his career and is back in the Italy squad after four years out, fresh off his most prolific season at Nice.
Although age and becoming a father have helped, SuperMario also employed a personal coach to help improve his general outlook.
“Mario deserves so much of the credit, because he believed in this journey and dedicated himself to it heart and soul,” trainer Armando Caligaris told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“The first results are there for all to see. I first met Mario when he was out of action due to a recurring hip inflammation, Nice had given him three days of rest and he wanted to go back to Brescia.
“He remained in France, albeit unhappily, and we sat down around a table. I looked into his eyes and found whatever I had prepared to say was futile. He wasn’t paying much attention to my words, but he was weighing me up.
“In that moment, I got the confirmation of what I had thought: Mario is a lion who belongs in the Savannah. I asked him if he was still capable of dreaming, of setting short and long-term objectives. He replied that he wanted to recover from this injury.
“Together, we then dreamed with eyes open on the long-term targets and a dream that has already come true – his return to the Nazionale.
“I asked if he wanted to get back to being one of the 10 best players in the world. His reply was perfect: ‘No, I want to be the best.’ That’s where his comment about the Ballon d’Or came from the other day.
“The real long-term objective is to reach the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but we’re taking it one step at a time.”
Balotelli is famous for his off the field antics, so how did a personal coach deal with him?
“Mario is a talent, you can’t teach him how to play football, but I explained how champions are ‘concentrated’ more than talents, so it’s not just about capabilities. A talent is someone who is consistent over 90 minutes and throughout a season. To do that, you need to control your emotions and moods.
“At times I ask Mario how it came into his brain to make a cheeky move or very difficult shot and he just looks at me, as if he’s not sure either. That is when I realise it’s best to close the books on neuroscience and psychology.
“Mario is simply a player born to express the art of football. Mario is a lion in the Savannah and I would not be working with him if he’d been a lion suited to a zoo or a circus life. People should walk a mile in his shoes and he’d be happy to lend them.
“We analysed video footage of games and certain situations we should be clearer on. He improved his aerial ability by studying great centre-forwards of the past like Gabriel Batistuta and Oliver Bierhoff, or even how Cristiano Ronaldo has grown nowadays.”
Despite his reputation for being easily distracted, Balotelli is a good student, assures his personal coach.
“Mario has an exceptional capacity to concentrate and select information, that’s why it is so rare to see him miss a penalty. He can improve in his focus over 90 minutes.
“We are working on his dribbling skills, which require great focus for a brief temporal range, so that can be improved with specific exercises.
“I realised he would make it when Mario called me after a game against PSG, where he scored a goal and kept himself out of certain brawls. In that phone call, he talked not about the goal, but of not being booked, a clear sign of his maturity.
“It used to be Balotelli would have one goal and one yellow card, but now the goals are far more than the bookings.”
The personal coach also described some of the techniques used, such as lying flat on the ground, focusing on breathing and visualising targets.
“Mario is a generous, intelligent, sensitive and sincere person. He is not a ‘character’ built up in the media, as everything he does and says is heartfelt.
“So far, I have passed on only five per cent of what I’d like to. The best is yet to come.”
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