AC Milan winger Stephan El Shaarawy has insisted that Mario Balotelli regrets the way he reacted to officials following the side's 2-1 defeat to Napoli.

Shaarawy did say that actions such as that which led to Balotelli receiving a three-match ban do not help the team and urged the striker to think about his conduct in future.

"He knows it was wrong and he apologised to us after the game," Shaarawy told Gazzetta dello Sport. "He made a mistake. It's an aspect of his character he knows he must improve because it penalises us."

Milan have struggled at the start of the new season and are currently 12th in Serie A.