Roberto Mancini: 'Mario Balotelli can match Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi'

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has stated his belief that his striker Mario Balotelli has the potential to become as good as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Balotelli has had an eventful two-year stint at the Etihad Stadium, which has included a number of incidents both on and off the pitch.

With that in mind, Mancini has urged the 22-year-old to alter his attitude and make the most of his ability.

"Mario, outside the pitch, is a fantastic guy. Sometimes he doesn't understand which is your job, and how his job is important for his life, but I hope for him that he can understand this quickly," the Italian manager told reporters.

"Now he is 22 but life can go quickly and I hope he can improve everything because as a player he could be like Cristiano and Messi, if he understands that to be like this you should work hard, your mind should be always on your job, not on the other things that are not important. I am very sorry for him for this.

"He has everything to be one of the best players in the world."

Balotelli was recently dropped from the City squad that took on Tottenham Hotspur because of his poor attitude in training.