Born in Palermo, Italy in 1990, Balotelli overcame a life-threatening illness early in life to begin his career with Lumezzane. He made his senior debut at the age of 15 against Padova in the Serie C1.
In 2006 after just two appearances for Lumezzane, ‘Super Mario’ went on loan to Internazionale. He started his career at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in the under-17 squad before joining the Primavera under-20 team.
His first-team debut came in December 2007 as a substitute, and three days later he scored two goals during Inter’s 4-1 Coppa Italia win against Reggina. That season he also scored in the Supercoppa Italiana final against Roma.
Balotelli signed a three-year deal with Inter ahead of the 2008/09 season. In November 2008 he became the youngest Inter player to score in the Champions League when he netted against Anorthosis Famagusta. He has since continued to impress by helping Inter win the 2010 Champions League, Coppa Italia and Serie A trophies, scoring 20 goals in 59 appearances.
The 20 year-old made 16 appearances for the Italian under 21s, scoring six goals, before making his debut for the senior side just two days before joining the Blues.
