• Premier League

Don't blame Balotelli for City's failure - Lescott

ESPN staff
April 18, 2012
Mario Balotelli has been regularly in the headlines this season © PA Photos
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Joleon Lescott insists team-mate Mario Balotelli should not be made a scapegoat if Manchester City miss out on the Premier League title.

City have lost ground on rivals Manchester United in recent weeks as the champions sit five points clear at the top of the table.

Although United's surprise defeat to Wigan last week saw the gap reduced from eight, Roberto Mancini declared the title race over after City's defeat to Arsenal on Easter Sunday.

That defeat was compounded by a red card for Balotelli at Emirates Stadium, and the controversial striker's future was thrown into doubt following a string of incidents both on and off the field this season.

But Lescott believes Balotelli should not be singled out and believes the Italian has learnt from his mistakes.

"I think it's a bit harsh to solely blame Mario," Lescott told Sky Sports News. "He's a young player and he's going to make mistakes - we all did at that age. Obviously he's disappointed about what happened with Arsenal but hopefully he's learnt from that."

Lescott also refused to be drawn on whether he thought City would still be in top spot if Carlos Tevez had been available all season. The Argentinean has been in impressive form since returning from a six-month absence following his falling-out with the City heirarchy.

With four goals in two games, including a hat-trick against Norwich on Saturday, Lescott admits City have missed their former skipper, but he refused to speculate on what might have been.

"We're not dwelling on the past," he said. "Who's to say that if Carlos had stayed he wouldn't have got injured and missed the rest of the season. We're just grateful that he's back and playing for Man City and scoring goals."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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