Mario Balotelli suffers racist abuse from his own Italy fans at World Cup training camp
Ex-Manchester City striker was abused when training with Italy
Balotelli complained to team-mates but boss Cesare Prandelli didn't hear it
The 23-year-old is a very important player for the Italians
Police were forced to disperse supporters from training camp
One fan shouted the 'n' word at Balotelli
By Joe Bernstein
Italy’s World Cup preparations suffered a major embarrassment yesterday when police were forced to disperse supporters after racial abuse was aimed at the team’s star striker Mario Balotelli.
Balotelli was shocked to hear at least one fan shout out ‘F***ing N****’ as he took part in a sprinting exercise with his team-mates at the Coverciano complex near Florence.
The 23-year-old Balotelli, who was less than 50 metres away when the insults were hurled, immediately complained to nearby team-mates, and police were called to break up a group of around 20 fans including schoolchildren who had gathered in a street overlooking Coverciano to watch training.
Disgusting: Mario Balotelli suffered racial abuse from his own supporters during Italy's World Cup training camp
Afterwards, team-mate Ciro Immobile said: ‘In 2014, we shouldn’t need to be talking about racism again.
‘We didn’t speak to Mario about it afterwards because I think he agrees with me, we do not want to give any importance to these people.
‘At the moment, there is a problem with chants about black people. Fortunately, Mario was very calm. We had a meeting when we met up about behaviour and not reacting, and he acted the right way.
‘We know it is a very bad thing but we don’t want to give publicity for the people who do it.’
Yesterday, Balotelli limited himself to telling team-mate Claudio Marchisio ‘I only ever get this in Rome or Florence.’
Italy has a long-standing problem with racism and Balotelli was abused by Roma fans during a game for AC Milan in 2013.
He made a ‘shh’ gesture with his lips after he and team-mate Kevin Prince-Boateng were greeted by monkey noises and Balotelli said afterwards he would walk off the pitch if he encountered it again.
Immobile, who could partner Balotelli up front when they play England in their first match of the World Cup in Manaus on June 14, added: ‘I’m not ashamed to be Italian because of this but I am sad when these things happen. We should try to use our role to improve behaviour, so people don’t do it.’
Not happy: Balotelli told team-mates he only receives this kind of abuse when in Florence or Rome
The incident took place less than an hour into the second day of manager Cesare Prandelli’s World Cup bootcamp, at around 10.45am local time. The manager himself was not close to Balotelli at the time and said he did not hear any racial slur, though he said he did hear other messages of encouragement for his striker. It’s been a bumpy start all round for the Italians preparations. On Tuesday, goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon – one of four survivors from their 2006 World Cup squad – announced he was separating from his wife Alena, forcing Prandelli to say the split would not affect his preparations for Brazil. Balotelli is also in the middle of a legal battle to see more of his 18-month-old daughter Pia. The striker is well-known to English fans having won the Premier League and FA Cup with Manchester City. Looking ahead: The former Manchester City striker is likely to hold the key for the Italians this summer
He returned to sign for Milan at the beginning of last year and though his form last season was patchy, he is a certainty to make Prandelli’s final cut of 23 because of his performances at Euro 2012.
O atacante Mario Balotelli, do Milan, foi alvo de gritos e cantos racistas por parte de torcedores durante treinamento da seleção italiana nesta quarta-feira, 21, em Coverciano, centro de treinamento da Azzurra em Florença, onde os jogadores iniciaram sua preparação para a disputa da Copa do Mundo no Brasil, que começa no dia 12 de junho.

Segundo informações publicadas pelo jornal Gazzetta dello Sport, cerca de 20 torcedores italianos, alguns deles alunos de uma escola local, começaram a entoar gritos racistas e a chamar Balotelli de “negro de m…” a menos de 50 metros de distância do atleta. Em entrevista ao periódico, o atacante condenou a atitude dos fãs da seleção: “Inacreditável, só em Roma e Florença acontecem essas coisas”.

Companheiro do jogador do Milan na Azzurra, Ciro Immobile também comentou o incidente, afirmando que o grupo procurou desvalorizar a atitude dos torcedores, ignorando os gritos. “Não conversamos com o Mario (Balotelli) sobre isso depois porque acho que ele concorda comigo: não queremos dar importância alguma a essas pessoas. No momento, há um problemas com cantos contra pessoas negras. Por sorte, o Mario estava muito calmos. Tivemos uma palestra sobre comportamento e sobre não reagir, e ele agiu da maneira correta”, revelou Immobile.

No final do mês passado, o brasileiro Daniel Alves, do Barcelona, foi alvo de insulto racista, quando um torcedor do Villarreal atirou uma banana em sua direção durante partida entre as duas equipes no estádio El Madrigal. Na ocasião, o lateral direito, sem hesitar, pegou a fruta do chão e a comeu, catalisando uma campanha contra o racismo nas redes sociais, com participação de atletas de todo o mundo e celebridades brasileiras. Apesar de o acontecimento ter levantado a discussão sobre o problema no esporte, o número de casos não diminuiu.