'I'll give Keita €1 if he scores in the Coppa Italia final!' jokes the Lazio striker's father Mamadou Balde.
After admitting that the family were 'flattered' by interest from the Bianconeri, thoughts moved to tonight's final at the Stadio Olimpico.
'I'll give Keita €1 if he scores in the Coppa Italia final!' jokes the Lazio striker's father Mamadou Balde.
After admitting that the family were 'flattered' by interest from the Bianconeri, thoughts moved to tonight's final at the Stadio Olimpico.
"For Lazio it will be a very tough game because Juventus are a great team with many champions and strong defenders," the patriarch told Tuttosport. "My favorite is [Gianluigi] Buffon, he’s a phenomenon.
"I like his way of parrying, and his attitude. It’s a pity he’s not been playing in the Coppa Italia games, I'd like to see my son against him."
How will he react if his son scores a goal in the final tonight?
"I will give him €1! I started to give him a euro when he scored goals when he was nine, then he went into the Barcelona youth team, where he played as a central striker and scored a lot.
"Obviously if he scores against Juventus will also give him lots of compliments, I will be happy for him.
"His role-model has always been Cristiano Ronaldo. As a child he had a Real Madrid shirt and I sincerely believe that he still has it now. I do not know if he will go to Cardiff, you should ask him.
"He's playing well and scoring, but I think it is time that he achieves something. My impression is that Simone Inzaghi is a very good person and an excellent Coach. And he’s always ready to help his boys.
"He puts the emphasis on young players and compared with [Stefano] Pioli he prefers a different kind of football. To me, Inzaghi means Simone."
Finally, Balde senior took his opportunity to put the record straight about question marks over the Senegalese forward's character.
"I know what they say is not true. Keita is not crazy, he’s a nice guy for sure."