Italian superstar of the Turkish Süper Lig Mario Balotelli said yes on the same with Lionel Messi and Ronaldo in terms of football skill but he missed an opportunity to become one of sports great.
In a recent interview with Atletico, the in-form Adana Demirspor striker said his stance at Manchester City held him back.
The enigmatic forward and now with his seventh permanent club since he left the Etihad. But he raised the newcomer from the Süper Lig up to the fifth in the table with 10 goals in 20 of the highest level matches.
The performance has earned him a call with Italian national team for the first time since 2018.
In the interview with his former City teammate Nedum Onuoha, Balotelli recalled his 2011 statement of being on par with Messi and Ronaldo and admitted he was not up to par of reach that level.
“I’ve missed a few opportunities to be at that level,” he said. “But I’m 100% sure that my quality is at the same level as these people but I missed some chances, you know? Happens.
“And nowadays, I can’t say I’m like good like Ronaldo, because Ronaldo won how so many golden balls (Ballons d’Or)? Five? You can’t compare yourself to Messi and Ronaldo, nobody can.
“But if we only talk about quality, football quality, I have nothing to be jealous of of them, to tell the truth. “
Balotelli added who regretted the decision leave the city eventually of the 2012-13 season.
“I think it was my biggest mistake to leave City,” he said added. “Even in the year when i leftho played very well in Milan for a year and a halfma later I had a few problems. And now that I’m older, me know that I shouldn’t have left City in that moment.
“All these years have seen City improve, improve and improve. I could have been here like Sergio Agero for a long time.
“If you had my mind set now that I was at the City, probably one gold ball (Golden Ball) I could have won sure about this. But you know when you grow up you’re ripe more. “
The Italian forward, on the other hand, is happy with life in Adana Demirspor.
“I have a quiet life here. Me just go train. Fortunately, there isn’t much to do here (in Adana). You can only go to the cinema. So, there isn’t much to talk about. This is something I always have wanted – people it would only talk about football, not my life. “
Speaking of his plans, Balotelli said: “I have only two goals now: to go to the World Cup with Italy and reach the top 3 of the Süper Lig with Adana Demirspor “.
