Mario Balotelli: 15 Bold Predictions for the Manchester City Striker in 2012

A new year presents new opportunities for Manchester City's enigmatic striker Mario Balotelli to capture the imagination.

While many choose to publicise—in some cases even enhance his 'bad boy' reputation, Mario Balotelli is football player—a supremely talented one at that.

Here are 15 Mario Balotelli predictions for 2012 which could see the Italian break records, win medals and let his ability shine through.

Enjoy the slideshow.

Cement Place in Manchester City Line Up

First things first. Super Mario needs to nail down his position in the City starting #11, something which he looks to be accomplishing after an on-and-off first season in England.

Form Partnership with Antonio Di Natale

The prospect of Antonio Di Natale and Balotelli forming a partnership for the Italian national team is mouthwatering—if slightly late for the Udinese striker. Cesar Prandelli has confirmed that the pair will start Italy's friendly versus the USA on 29 February.

Lead the Line in EURO 2012

Once a strike partnership is fostered, the next stop is EURO 2012. Italy will have high hopes for this competition after an impressive, unbeaten qualifying campaign.

Win over the Media

Super Mario often finds himself in the tabloids for off-field actions rather than on. Could 2012 be the year his footballing ability wins round the media?

Win Place in Team of the Year

As City undertake the second half of their title push, Balotelli will be a vital figure as one of only three strikers at the club. A successful second half could see him included in the Barclays Premier League Team of the Season.

Make Ballon D'Or Shortlist

As reigning holder of the Golden Boy award (basically the junior Ballon d'Or) the next logical step would be to progress up to the senior rankings.

Finish as Manchester City's leading goalscorer

11 goals in 15 appearances so far this season puts the Italian five goals behind his striking teammate Sergio Aguero.  He faces fierce competition from the Argentine and Edin Dzeko, but you would not bet against Balotelli going on a scoring run to blitz the competition.

Win the Golden Boot

If he finishes as City's leading scorer, he could very well end up with the Golden Boot for most goals in the Premier League season-an award currently joint held by Carlos Tevez and Dimitar Berbatov.

Concede He Had a Good Season

After the final game of last season, Balotelli pronounced on live television that he thought his season had been "shit".  Hopefully he will have more of a celebration this term!

Improve His Assist Ratio

Although his scoring rate is impressive, Balotelli has yet to assist a goal in the Barclays Premier League this season.

Score the Goal Which Clinches City the Premier League

Well...someone has to!

Score a Free Kick

Super Mario scored a few long range piledrivers during his time at Internazionale but has yet to register a free kick in a sky blue shirt.

Outdo His Derby Celebration

Is it possible to outdo 'Why Always Me?'  If anyone can, it's Super Mario.

Score a Backheel

A chance for redemption after an incident during the American pre-season tour, which involved either a) a failed backheel attempt to score or b) kicking the ball out of play after wrongly believing himself to be offside.

Continue His Charity Efforts

While stories about tramps, fireworks and darts may attract the headlines, Super Mario's charity work often goes underneath the radar.  Financing the building of a school in South Sudan-complete with the 'Mario Balotelli Wing' is just one of many projects the City striker is involved in.

More details on Super Mario's charity work can be found on his official website.