Roberto Mancini tells Mario Balotelli to improve his attitude

Manchester City travel to west London to face Fulham on Sunday, although the manager will be shorn of attacking options thanks to the continuing suspension of Mario Balotelli.

The Italian was dismissed for violent conduct at West Brom a fortnight ago and the club decided against appealing against a kick that looked pretty blatant. Indeed, it’s been a slow start to the striker’s time at Eastlands and Roberto Mancini has urged the forward to buck his ideas up.

“He must change his mentality,” said Mancini. “He must think about playing because if he plays here he can score every game. He can’t afford to talk with the referee. He needs to think about his job because he can make a difference on the pitch.”

Balotelli has scored both of Manchester City’s goals at The Hawthorns before being dismissed, thus demonstrating his class although there were worrying signs for the manager as the young striker seemed to be prone to going to ground in the penalty area.

The youngster was also making headlines this week after being racially abused by his own supporters during Italy’s friendly against Romania and the player has also been linked with a swift return to an Italian club.