Mario Balotelli hogs the headlines at Nice but Wylan Cyprien is the real story

After two relatively uncontroversial seasons at Nice, Mario Balotelli is back in the headlines. Mercifully, rather than return to the limelight for an indoor fireworks display in his bathroom, getting stuck in a training bib or one of his trademark red cards, Balotelli has made the back pages on account of his career revival in France. After an unhappy 2014/15 season with Liverpool and an injury-disrupted campaign with AC Milan on loan the following year – stints which resulted in a grand total of seven goals between them – Balotelli has undergone a renaissance with Nice, helping them launch an unexpected title tilt in Ligue 1 last term.

While Nice haven’t been as impressive as a team this season, Balotelli has been even more prolific. Having scored 17 goals in all competitions last season, he already has 22 for 2017/18. With less than six months left on his current contract, the Italian striker has talked up his chances of an eye-catching move to Serie A. “My agent Mino Raiola is taking care of my future. All I know is that I have matured and I am ready to come back to Italy,” Balotelli told Rai Sport show La Domenica Sportiva. “I think it’d be very difficult to come to Milan, as it would be the third time, but Juventus and Napoli are two teams that I like.”

In reality, Balotelli seems unlikely to get a move to the likes of Juve or Napoli. Though his performances have been much improved since his professional nadir with Liverpool, he still carries enormous baggage with him and has an enduring reputation for erratic behaviour. Juventus chief executive Giuseppe Marotta has already attempted to distance the Bianconeri from Balotelli, telling Mediaset Premium: “Balotelli? It’s great to watch him play, he’s a great player, but we aren’t following him at this moment. I repeat, he’s an important player and he could be useful to the national team in the near future.”

One to watch

While the Balotelli transfer is bound to dominate the media coverage of Nice over the next few months, one of his teammates is arguably more newsworthy. He may not have inspired a litany of ‘10 Craziest Moments’ articles or captured the collective imagination as much as Balotelli – or indeed have an agent as adept at public relations as Mino Raiola – but Wylan Cyprien is another player who has been linked with a move away this summer.

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According to reports in Italy, the young midfielder from Guadeloupe is a target for Inter Milan among others. Despite suffering a cruciate ligament rupture last March and missing much of the current season as a result, the 23-year-old returned to action in December and has shown glimmers of his best form since then. Before he was injured, reports were beginning to circulate linking him to one of the two Manchester clubs and a potential move to the Premier League.

Having started his senior career with second-division RC Lens, who he helped achieve promotion to Ligue 1 at the end of 2013/14, Cyprien moved to Nice in 2016 and has since scored 11 goals in 46 games from central and attacking midfield. While Jean Seri has generally been widely heralded as the driving force for Nice in the middle of the park, Cyprien has been a capable understudy in the centre. Though Seri often plays a deeper-lying role, it’s still worth noting that Cyprien has as many goals in 46 appearances as his teammate has in 112.

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If Cyprien is a more attack-minded midfielder than Seri, he also brings a strong passing range, tight close control and danger from the dead ball and set piece. Known for his long-range rockets and explosive right boot, his highlights reel is never going to be short on material even if he has work to do to refine the details of his game. This weekend, as Nice beat Lille 2-1, Cyprien assisted Balotelli for the opener with a slashed delivery from a corner. He followed up with a screaming winner on the volley after Lille had equalised through Luiz Araujo, exactly the sort of attention-grabbing intervention on which the up-and-coming midfielder has built his reputation.

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When Balotelli gets his summer move, wherever it may be, the media fanfare will be enormous. Cyprien might not get the same headline treatment, but his next career move is worth following closely. Where Balotelli brings enormous entertainment value, most of us know what to expect from the self-styled maverick at this point. At only 23, Wylan Cyprien has far fewer limits on what he can achieve.