Manchester Tug-of-War: Race To Sign "Super" Mario Balotelli

With an already seemingly active transfer window under way, there seems to be a storm brewing in Manchester between the two clubs that call the city home.

Both Manchester United and Manchester City are in a race to sign 19-year-old wonder kid Mario Balotelli from Inter Milan.

The Ghanaian-born Italian forward can play on either of the two flanks but flourishes when playing up top as an outright striker. He has furious pace to terrorize any back line, a tremendous eye for goal in which he is not shy about, and his free-kick ability gets better by the day.

He wants to leave Milan after a season in which most of his appearances came off the bench because of training ground dust-ups and disagreements with then-manager, Jose Mourinho. The teenager who turns 20 in August has seemingly taken a bad rap from the scrutinizing Italian media, who call him arrogant and cocky.

In my observation, he has tried to remain humble and just wants to further himself in his footballing career by scoring goals and winning silverware.

All this has culminated in to him having his sights set on the English Premier League. Both Sir Alex Ferguson and Roberto Mancini have been leading the pack to sign Balotelli. Carlo Ancelotti has lauded the skill of "Super" Mario and stated that Sir Alex Ferguson could make him a star.

Balotelli has declared his desire to play for either of the Manchester clubs, saying that Mancini remains a friend who gave him his first shot at Inter. But Balotelli has also noted that it is an honor to receive interest from United.

I personally believe he would be a better fit at Manchester United then City.

I say this because City already has a logjam at striker with Tevez, Bellamy, Adebayor, and Santa Cruz. Also, City are still fighting to get trophies and Champions League football, while both are readily available at United. Balotelli could battle Berbatov for the starting job there.

City reportedly tabled a $25 million bid that Inter rejected and since have strengthened their bid to the $30-35 million range. While United have yet to make an offer, people close to the player have stated that Balotelli is more attracted to United and might veto any agreement between City and Inter.