Micah Richards: “Balo lit the fireworks inside my house, working with Mancini seemed like a nightmare”

Today Manchester City are one of the strongest teams in the world, fighting to win the Champions League. But the road to get to the top was long and went from the title won in the 2011-12 season: that of 3-2 at the QPR at the last second with Roberto Mancini on the bench and Mario Balotelli on the pitch. Last summer Micah Richards left Aston Villa and said goodbye to football at the age of 31: the defender who grew up in the City’s youth teams also played with Fiorentina 2014-15 without leaving his mark. Today Richards is a columnist for the BBC and enjoys telling the anecdotes of his career, which also includes some close encounters with some of the protagonists of Italian football.

MARIO IN THE HEART – Richards told many goodies to the microphones of SportBible, starting with his special relationship with the ‘bad boy’ Balotelli: “Mario is an exceptional guy and it is very pleasant to be in his company. He came to my house a couple of weeks before the fireworks incident and tried to turn them on by me too … Mario thinks everything is fun, I like it so much because he never takes his life too seriously “. Strange stories aside, seven years later the former defender did not forget Balotelli’s assist for Sergio Agüero who scored the goal to win the Premier League. A triumph that came mainly thanks to Mancio.

PERFECTIONIST – Richards revealed what it means to be coached by Mancini: “Working with him seemed like a nightmare at times because he is a perfectionist … Mancio seems like one of those professors you are always afraid of making a mistake with, but he managed to get the best out of us. . Winning the Premier League against people like Ferguson and Wenger is an incredible achievement. Mancini loves football and has worked hard to win that championship. ” The manager, however, had a protégé: “Agüero was our main striker and Mancini loved Balotelli, so Dzeko didn’t play as starter as he would have liked. But Edin was fantastic and he’s one of the most underrated players around.” So spoke Richards, the man who grew up in the City and grown up with the City. Who with the title … tricolor of 2011-12 began to rewrite his history.