'We were crying with laughter!' - Florian Thauvin reveals hilarious Mario Balotelli food mix-up that left ex-Man City star WEEPING

According to ex-Newcastle United man Thauvin, when Balotelli joined Marseille in 2019, the striker accidentally poured harissa - a chilli sauce or paste - on his pasta during a pre-season camp, but he thought it was tomato ketchup. The former Manchester City man was soon in agony, much to the amusement of his new team-mates.

The Frenchman, now at Udinese, told The Sun: "Mario Balotelli signed for Marseille. We were on a pre-match training camp, and having a meal. At that time Adil Rami was at the club, and he always asked for there to be harissa on the table. So the chef always used to put out a bowl of harissa for Adil. Balotelli showed up. It was his first pre-match camp with the club, and everything was new for him. As the good Italian he is, he helped himself to pasta.

"He thought the harissa was tomato sauce. He began plastering the harissa over his pasta - he took a big helping of it. Us other players looked at one another, and thought: 'That's hot stuff - and he's taken a lot of it'. We thought he knew what he was doing. We didn't know him, so we felt he knew and that there was no problem. Mario began to eat, but inside five minutes he was weeping and the sweat was pouring down his face. All the players wished him welcome to the club. We were crying with laughter - it was exceptional."

Balotelli, 33, has made a name for himself of being a fiery character and has been involved in a number of crazy incidents throughout his career. Despite his talent, the Italian has been criticised by managers, team-mates and the media for his attitude and, at times, volatile temperament. But 'Super Mario' - who has won major trophies in Italy and England - has quite the legacy, of that there is no doubt.

Balotelli is currently in his second spell at Turkish Super Lig side Adana Demirspor. His side, who sit 11th in the table, host Kayserispor on Saturday evening.