Francesco Totti admits his kick on Mario Balotelli was ‘horrible’ but insists ‘it was building up for years’ as ‘he insulted me’.
Totti was infamously sent off for kicking out at Balotelli during Roma’s 1-0 defeat to Inter in May 2010, and the Giallorossi icon was asked about the incident by La Repubblica.
“Milan wanted me when I was 12? In that case, the ‘no’ was from my family, especially my mother,” he told the newspaper.
Francesco Totti admits his kick on Mario Balotelli was ‘horrible’ but insists ‘it was building up for years’ as ‘he insulted me’.
Totti was infamously sent off for kicking out at Balotelli during Roma’s 1-0 defeat to Inter in May 2010, and the Giallorossi icon was asked about the incident by La Repubblica.
“Milan wanted me when I was 12? In that case, the ‘no’ was from my family, especially my mother,” he told the newspaper.
“She’s old-fashioned: apprehensive, possessive. My dad worked late, so it was always her who was behind me. She wanted me all for herself.
“My kick at Balotelli? He’d been provocative for years. He insulted me and the Roma fans. It was building up and then it exploded.
“It was a horrible foul, just to hurt him. But then, strangely, the Inter players didn’t confront me.
“As I left the field, Maicon even gave me five. The feeling was that even among his teammates, Balotelli created some irritation.
“I didn’t want any champions at Roma? Rubbish. If champions didn’t arrive, it was because of budget limits, not me.
“I’ve always wanted to win. Sour grapes when we won 3-0 against Barcelona because I wasn’t on the field? There’s always criticism, regardless of your actions. I know how I felt about it and I have nothing to prove.
“It’s true that I didn’t celebrate the first goal, but that’s because we hadn’t yet killed the game off.
“I got up for the second one and for the third one, I gave my son Cristian a hug. Those who criticised me didn’t see me.
“Capello? You're always wrong when you talk to him. He knows a lot, but the last word must always be his.
“If a pigeon passes and he says it’s a seagull, he’ll show you that it’s a seagull. He’s stubborn and a perfectionist. A maniac, even.”