Former Liverpool and Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli has certainly had an eventful few months in France since signing for Nice.
The team have had an incredible run in the league, winning 13 of their 19 games to date, which leaves them atop the table by two points as they head into the winter break.
Balotelli has contributed to that with a number of important and, at times, brilliant goals, but he has been no stranger to disciplinary problems either, racking up two red cards and eight yellows in his 14 games so far.
One of those red cards came on Wednesday night as Nice took on Bordeaux in a game that ended in a scoreless draw. With the clock ticking towards the 90 minute mark, Balotelli was involved in a robust challenge with Igor Lewczuk, and lashed out at him as a result.
Mario Balotelli has either scored, been booked or sent off in every match he has played for Nice...
*Courtesy of beIN Sports* pic.twitter.com/b92fwxILMQ
— Fantasy iTeam (@fantasyiteam) December 22, 2016
Lewczuk makes the most of the contact and dives into the air with a twirl to alert the referee, but it was an easy decision for Mikael Lesage to make.
Balotelli did decide to give his shirt to a fan in the crowd as he made his way from the pitch, but he also chose to push over a television camera in frustration as well.
His agent, Mino Raiola, has been stirring the pot ahead of the January window as he spoke of a possible transfer - again - for the talented but volatile Italian on Talksport.
"We've already had talks with English clubs, but it's really too early to say," Raiola said. "We want to keep it day-by-day with Mario. For Mario I always knew [his return to form] would come. He was in his last year at Liverpool and he was very stable, and not so emotional any more."
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
