International Football star Mario Balotelli is now linked to the mysterious disappearance of Malaysian airliner that still hasn’t been recovered. Well, Balotelli is linked in a very loose and circuitous way.
Two men traveling on flight MH370, the story that has dominated international news headlines since Friday, have been confirmed as using stolen passports. One of which, authorities saying resembles A.C. Milan striker Mario Balotelli.
Balotelli moved from Manchester City to Milan during the 2012-13 season, but is still very well known for his time (2010-13) with Man City.
According to Canada’s National Post:
Civil aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman declined to confirm this, but said they were of “non-Asian” appearance, adding that authorities were looking at the possibility the men were connected to a stolen passport syndicate.
Asked by a reporter what they looked like “roughly,” he said: “Do you know of a footballer by the name of Mario Balotelli? He is an Italian. Do you know how he looks like?”
A reporter then asked, “Is he black?” and the aviation chief replied, “Yes.”
A bit odd; kind of a bizarre analogy.
I doubt Mario Balotelli seeks this type of media attention.
There is still no confirmation that MH370, the Boeing 777 en route to Beijing from Malaysian with 239 people on board has crashed. The Vietnamese report indicating that the door to the Malaysian Airliner had been found was discredited. The oil slicks seen on the ocean surface have been tested, and found to be the type of fuel used in shipping, not jet fuel.
Hundreds of distraught relatives around the world await anxiously for any news. No wreckage of the flight has been recovered.
There has been no indication that the two men with stolen passports had anything to do with the tragedy, but the use of stolen passports fueled speculation of foul play, terrorism or a hijacking gone wrong. This mystery, and likely tragedy reminds to keep sports in perspective. Remember that your favorite team, no matter your nationality, no matter the game is fighting for just mere wins and losses; not life or death.
Mario Balotelli has yet to comment publicly on the fact that he supposedly resembles an important person of interest in the investigation. He, along with the rest of his AC Milan teammates take on Atletico Madrid in the knockout round of the UEFA Champions League tomorrow. Man City take on Barcelona on Wednesday.
Paul M. Banks owns The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An MBA and Fulbright scholar, he’s also a frequent analyst on news talk radio; with regular segments on ESPN,NBC, CBS and Fox. A former NBC Chicago and Washington Times writer, he’s also been featured on the History Channel. President Obama follows him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)