“Balotelli must not be afraid of anything!”

Mario Balotelli’s first derby throws him into the spotlight, but Sinisa Mihajlovic has a plan. “Don’t be afraid of anything!”

The 17-year-old has already developed a similar reputation to Cristiano Ronaldo for irritating opponents with his trickery.
“He must not be afraid of anything!” smiled Inter assistant manager Mihajlovic. “He has to play the way he knows how.

“Then if there is a problem after the final whistle, he just has to come near me, nobody will touch him. That is for sure.”

It could be argued Balotelli is capable of looking after himself, as despite the fact he won’t turn 18 until August, he is already 1.88m tall and weighs a muscular 80kg. “Last year when he came with the senior team for pre-season training you could see straight away what he was made of,” continued Mihajlovic on Sky Italia television.

“If he carries on improving like this, day after day, he could become one of the all-time greats. I always tell him to relax, as he mustn’t be afraid of anyone or anything.”

You can judge for yourselves when Balotelli stars against Milan in the derby, live on Five at 14.00.--source;channel4