The racist abuse of Mario Balotelli made for another awful day in Serie A, made worse by those who deny it is even occurring
You can’t delete racism. It’s like a cigarette. You can’t stop smoking if you don’t want to, and you can’t stop
racism if people don’t want to.
Six years have passed since Mario Balotelli spoke those words in an interview with Sports Illustrated. He was on top of the world back then, Italy’s first-choice No 9 and fresh from a triumphant half-season at Milan. Signed from
Manchester City during the January transfer window, he had scored 12 times in 13 games for the Rossoneri, carrying them to third place.