The Most Interesting Man in the World

mitosis

I give you Mario! Are Americans mad, or what?

niallo27

He is friends with the pope.

Bounty Hunter

niallo27 wrote: »

He is friends with the pope.

what do you expect from someone who can clearly walk on water as pictured above



meanwhile in St Tropez



An enigma wraped in a riddle surrounded by a hilarious mad man whos great at football

Mr.Nice Guy

He is from Cork.

The face of ITV.

Friend to...um...

Subject of hate and adulation - and that's just his own fans.

The face of new punditry.

An Ofcom investigation waiting to happen.

The best ex-pro from United on T.V. Except maybe Gary Neville.



ROY
Keane

BMMachine

i always thought roy would be better than he actually is as a pundit.

as for mario, he is interesting for a generation that is interested in all the wrong things

AdamD

BMMachine wrote: »

i always thought roy would be better than he actually is as a pundit.

as for mario, he is interesting for a generation that is interested in all the wrong things

Nah hes just not incredibly dull like 99% of footballers.

Super-Rush

Ha.

I give you Jamie Carragher.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVfYV2rcTyQ

Fr Tod Umptious

mitosis wrote: »

I give you Mario! Are Americans mad, or what?

Is that the full proper US Edition of SI ?
If it is then the most interesting thing is that a soccer player has made the cover, without a world cup being on and just before the start of football season (NFL)

Just shows how popular top flight European soccer is becoming in America, or more to the point how much top flight European soccer is being pushed by the media over there

SantryRed

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Is that the full proper US Edition of SI ?
If it is then the most interesting thing is that a soccer player has made the cover, without a world cup being on and just before the start of football season (NFL)

Just shows how popular top flight European soccer is becoming in America, or more to the point how much top flight European soccer is being pushed by the media over there

The EPL is getting a serious push over here now with NBC. The Swansea-United game was on NBC's main channel! When I was in NY last week, they had black mini cabs flying around, advertising the start date, and also the Subway into Time Square from Grand Central (Probably one of the most busy!) was completely plastered in the top 6 team colours. There was 6 carriages, and each one was a different team inside and out. You had United/City, Liverpool/Everton and Arsenal/Spurs. Madness.

Sir Gallagher

SantryRed wrote: »

The EPL is getting a serious push over here now with NBC. The Swansea-United game was on NBC's main channel! When I was in NY last week, they had black mini cabs flying around, advertising the start date, and also the Subway into Time Square from Grand Central (Probably one of the most busy!) was completely plastered in the top 6 team colours. There was 6 carriages, and each one was a different team inside and out. You had United/City, Liverpool/Everton and Arsenal/Spurs. Madness.

Yeah, i was in NY last week and noticed a cab covered in Arsenal advertising, which i thought was pretty random. I went to a bar at 7am for the Liverpool match and the barman was telling me about NBC showing all the games this season and how great it is. Turns out it was an Arsenal supporters bar and they all start filing in toward the end of the Pool match. Some of their shouts were absolutely terrible/cringeworthy but they knew how to whip up an atmosphere and get the session going not bad for 10 in the morning.

Seaneh

Mario probably is the most interesting man in football.

23 year old who is he poster-boy for the Italian national team and A.C. Milan.
Hated by loads, loved by loads, and the source of near constant bewilderment/amusement for most.
Undoubtedly one of the best young players on the planet, Serie A and Premier League winner as well as Champions League winner, already has 25 Italy caps, is the face of the "new Italy" and Calico Italia's focal point for their anti-racism campaigns.

He may not be everyone's cup of gold blend, but it's hard to say that Palermo born son of Ghanaian immigrants who survived life threatening medical conditions as an infant and was adopted by an Italian family and then went on to play for the Italian national team while still a teenager and become the "biggest" player for one of the "biggest" international teams in the world isn't pretty interesting.

I honestly think the people who dislike him the most, know the least about him.
He is literally living proof that no matter how ****ty your beginnings are, you can overcome them and be somebody.

speedboatchase

Sir Gallagher wrote: »

Some of their shouts were absolutely terrible/cringeworthy...

Humour me, I wanna hear some

LuckyLloyd

I'll admit that I was on the fence about him football wise until the Euro 2012 semi final. Since then I'm convinced that he is destined to pop up in huge games with monster performances. I think Milan have a gem on their hands to be honest.

The_Kew_Tour

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

I'll admit that I was on the fence about him football wise until the Euro 2012 semi final. Since then I'm convinced that he is destined to pop up in huge games with monster performances. I think Milan have a gem on their hands to be honest.

This for me too.

Going to be very good.

Fr Tod Umptious

SantryRed wrote: »

The EPL is getting a serious push over here now with NBC. The Swansea-United game was on NBC's main channel! When I was in NY last week, they had black mini cabs flying around, advertising the start date, and also the Subway into Time Square from Grand Central (Probably one of the most busy!) was completely plastered in the top 6 team colours. There was 6 carriages, and each one was a different team inside and out. You had United/City, Liverpool/Everton and Arsenal/Spurs. Madness.

Off topic I know but there is a bit of a LOI v Barstoolers situation developing in the US
They will bust their asses getting up at 7am to watch United v City but will not bother watching Chicago v New England in MLS at 7pm

Lovely Bloke

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Off topic I know but there is a bit of a LOI v Barstoolers situation developing in the US
They will bust their asses getting up at 7am to watch United v City but will not bother watching Chicago v New England in MLS at 7pm

good. It's weird enough to see it at "normal" times in Ireland, but even weirder to see it in the likes of the US or Australia.

Skid X

What's this "futbol" business all about (on the front cover)? Don't they call it soccer anymore?

Seans_Username

Never liked him when Mancini was in charge. I always felt he could never control him and Balotelli's worst side came out on the pitch. Reckless tackles when he lost the ball, lazy and petulant. Although, admittedly I did enjoy some of his silly antics of the pitch.

BUT since he's left City he's been terrific. Watching him with the Italy and AC squad it's clear to see that his attitude has changed and he's been magnificent for club and country. He works hard on the pitch and he's showing his potential. He really is an enigma, and I'm starting to love him for it!

And he scored one of my favourite goals of all time. Everything about this is magnificent





Brilliant

DoctorGonzo08

Seans_Username wrote: »

Never liked him when Mancini was in charge. I always felt he could never control him and Balotelli's worst side came out on the pitch. Reckless tackles when he lost the ball, lazy and petulant. Although, admittedly I did enjoy some of his silly antics of the pitch.

BUT since he's left City he's been terrific. Watching him with the Italy and AC squad it's clear to see that his attitude has changed and he's been magnificent for club and country. He works hard on the pitch and he's showing his potential. He really is an enigma, and I'm starting to love him for it!

And he scored one of my favourite goals of all time. Everything about this is magnificent

Can't help but cringe at posts like this. Once a bandwagon starts everyone jumps on. He was excellent for City, and anyone who watched him would know this instead of forming opinions based on the media. He had three games in which he want awol, worst being the Arsenal game. But to use those very few instances to mar his time at City is a bit shortsighted. He was a joy to watch, his positioning, his movement for the team, and his flashes of brilliance. Never ever was shy to perform in big games and left a mark in each of them. He is a great talent with bags of potential, and will be one of the best, if not the best striker in the world in a few short years.

Seans_Username

DoctorGonzo08 wrote: »

Can't help but cringe at posts like this. Once a bandwagon starts everyone jumps on. He was excellent for City, and anyone who watched him would know this instead of forming opinions based on the media. He had three games in which he want awol, worst being the Arsenal game. But to use those very few instances to mar his time at City is a bit shortsighted. He was a joy to watch, his positioning, his movement for the team, and his flashes of brilliance. Never ever was shy to perform in big games and left a mark in each of them. He is a great talent with bags of potential, and will be one of the best, if not the best striker in the world in a few short years.

I said several times when I heard he signed for City that he would be trouble. In my post there I said that I never liked him under Mancini, not when he was at City.

I watched several Inter games when Mancini was in charge and never liked Balo's attitude. In particular in a game against Roma where he dived for a penalty and went on to score it. Then for underage Italy he lost the ball against Sweden and had a petulant kick out at the guy who took it off him. He had the talent undoubtedly, like his free kick against Rubin Kazan.

He was a child under Mancini. Since he left City he seems to have dropped the attitude when playing for Milan

DoctorGonzo08

Seans_Username wrote: »

I said several times when I heard he signed for City that he would be trouble. In my post there I said that I never liked him under Mancini, not when he was at City.

I watched several Inter games when Mancini was in charge and never liked Balo's attitude. In particular in a game against Roma where he dived for a penalty and went on to score it. Then for underage Italy he lost the ball against Sweden and had a petulant kick out at the guy who took it off him. He had the talent undoubtedly, like his free kick against Rubin Kazan.

He was a child under Mancini. Since he left City he seems to have dropped the attitude when playing for Milan

He was only at City under Mancini, and he played brilliantly. He has alot of respect for Mancini, as he has stated numerous times. He only ever criticised Mourinho. He developed immensley under Mancini, and he has continued to do so at Milan. No real suprise for me, but then again I never bought into the rubbish that was shoveled about him. I enjoyed watching him play.

eagle eye

He reminds me a lot of Eric Cantona, a misunderstood type(mainly his own doing) with great talent but somebody who puts himself in people's bad books unintentionally by doing silly things but then does something like going to a school with a young boy to sort out a bullying issue. I like him a lot, he appears to struggle with certain areas of life but you know he is a good guy behind it all.

I wouldn't be surprised if he becomes passionate about the arts in a few years.

RasTa

I've being saying since the start that he doesn't have the mentality to be world class. Failure at City and will be the same at Milan.

EuropeanSon

RasTa wrote: »

I've being saying since the start that he doesn't have the mentality to be world class. Failure at City and will be the same at Milan.

I don't see how anyone could say he wasn't world class already, he's one of the best players in the Italian national team.

Corholio

He's a quality player no doubt and a bit of a character, whilst losing the head now and again. However the amount of a big deal made about the fact that he's a bit more interesting than most players is kinda ridiculous. I've never really got why so called 'boring' players seem to be scalded for being that, you'd swear the rest of us were all more interesting.

GLaDOS

RasTa wrote: »

Failure at City and will be the same at Milan.

Calling him a failure at City is incredibly harsh. 30 goals in 80 games, with an FA Cup and League title is pretty good for someone his age. He mightn't have quite lived up to expectation (particularly in his final half season), but I don't think you can call him a failure.

RasTa

ScienceNerd wrote: »

Calling him a failure at City is incredibly harsh. 30 goals in 80 games, with an FA Cup and League title is pretty good for someone his age. He mightn't have quite lived up to expectation (particularly in his final half season), but I don't think you can call him a failure.

30 goals in 80 games is not world class. The word class statement is used to freely lately. He is not in the top 10 forwards in the world. Hernandez has 33 goals in 77 games for United + 2 titles. Do you consider him world class?

Although I see you where disagreeing mainly with me calling him a failure. Fair enough but he is only on this cover for what he does off the pitch and not his talent on the pitch

GLaDOS

I'll agree he has a lot to prove before you can all him world class, I think he has the ability to do it, it's just his attitude that could hold him back. Has started well in his Milan career though.

Seaneh

RasTa wrote: »

30 goals in 80 games is not world class. The word class statement is used to freely lately. He is not in the top 10 forwards in the world. Hernandez has 33 goals in 77 games for United + 2 titles. Do you consider him world class?

Although I see you where disagreeing mainly with me calling him a failure. Fair enough but he is only on this cover for what he does off the pitch and not his talent on the pitch

12 in 15 for Milan since January IS world class form.
His stats at city are more impressive when you consider he was a teenager then he started there and 22 when he left and played on the wing for most of his time there.

He is EASILY the best young striker in world football.

BMMachine

Seaneh wrote: »

He is EASILY the best young striker in world football.

Neymar

Juniorhurler

BMMachine wrote: »

Neymar

Probably on my own on this, but in a tight spot needing somebody to pull it out of the bag I honestly think Balotelli would be my pick of the two.

Corvo

You can read the interview online now. It is absolutely brilliant. Sorry I can't link, on the phone.