Football
Ian Holyman, France correspondent 5y

Mario Balotelli will leave Nice in the summer - president Jean-Pierre Rivere

Nice president Jean-Pierre Rivere has told RMC he does not expect Mario Balotelli to stay at the club when his contract expires at the end of this season.

Balotelli said in the summer that he wanted to leave after two successful years, only for no move to materialise. 

After a proposed switch to Marseille fell through, the Italy forward arrived two weeks late for preseason training, reportedly overweight, having decided to stay for a further 12 months.

Former Manchester City and Liverpool forward Balotelli, who had scored 31 times in 51 games for Nice before this season, has since failed to score in 10 league appearances.

Asked whether he thought Balotelli would sign a new deal, Rivere said: "No, I think it'll be over.

"For us, Mario was leaving [in the summer], so he missed preseason. I think any player who doesn't have a good preseason suffers during the first part of the season.

"Also, just when he is getting back into shape, he's not getting the rub of the green. That makes the poor guy tense.

"Mario hasn't lost his talent. The day when one will go in, they're going to come thick and fast after that. You can't have any regrets."

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