With the Kolo Toure suspension drawing plenty of attention outside the club, Mancini must now focus his side on Saturday's Barclays Premier League encounter with Wigan. That could mean another opportunity for the unpredictable Balotelli, who has rarely been out of the headlines himself since moving to England from Inter Milan.
As his former boss at the San Siro, Mancini should have known what to expect when he spent ?£24million on the 20-year-old. However, he said: "He is not listening to me. I speak but I don't think he listens."
The City manager was talking about his demand for Balotelli to become more industrious and not rest on his laurels after scoring, as he did against Fulham last week.
It did appear the message got home judging by Balotelli's performance against Aston Villa in midweek when he was deployed as a lone striker and responded with a far more well-rounded display in addition to bagging his 10th goal of the season.
But the drive and determination actually come from within rather than any external force. And Mancini is happy for that to continue if it helps Balotelli realise his enormous potential.
"It is not important that he doesn't listen to me," he said.
"What is important is that he does well, that he scores.
"But I know he can do better because I know his quality. He can change every game if he wants. He could score in every game.
"I hope, for him and us, he can understand this very quickly."
Source: PA
Source: PA