Sergio Aguero: Mario Balotelli was a Loved Figure in Manchester City

Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has revealed that he misses having Mario Balotelli at the Etihad, especially for his antics.

The Argentine says that the Italian did funny things like kicking the ball all over the place or throwing cheese on people in the dining hall.

However, the striker says that the antics did not dissuade people from loving him and he was always an integral part of their plans.

The revelation is in sharp contrast to his image of a hated character with players and managers tired of his attitude towards the game.

The striker failed to get into the good books of his manager at AC Milan and was sold for £16m to Liverpool this summer, where he has failed to live up to expectations.

His failure to score goals has added to the frustration and fans and the media alike are up against the striker.

However, he has a supporter in Aguero. "I still miss Mario Balotelli being at City. Even though he used to drive us all nuts," Aguero reveals in his new autobiography, 'Born to rise: My story', extracted by the Daily Mirror.

"We all knew Mario was a little crazy. The thing was, Mario was crazy when he wanted to be. He'd do daft things whenever he felt like it because he thought he could.

"We'd go out on the training pitch and he'd kick the balls away in different directions just to be silly, or he'd throw cheese over people when he was sat in the dining room.

"I couldn't help but wind him up, calling him silly names and toying with him. But he knew it was because I loved Mario – everyone loved him," he concluded.