PSG just another game for returning Balotelli

Nice should treat this weekend’s top of the table clash against Paris Saint-Germain no differently to any other Ligue 1 game, says Mario Balotelli.

The Italian striker returned to training on Tuesday after being sidelined for three weeks with a calf injury, and will be in contention to play the defending champions on Sunday.

Prior to his injury Balotelli scored six goals in as many league starts as Nice set their stall out as this season’s surprise package, a tag they have maintained in the 26-year-old’s absence.

One defeat all season in the league sees Lucien Favre’s side top of the table after 16 games, with a three-point cushion over Monaco in second place, while PSG are a further one point back in third.

. @FinallyMario tout sourire face aux médias chinois #Club pic.twitter.com/juSEfCYWvD

— OGC Nice (@ogcnice) December 6, 2016

Despite this weekend’s clash providing an opportunity for Nice to extend their advantage over Unai Emery’s men to seven points, Balotelli will not be treating the game in the capital any differently.

“Paris Saint-Germain, Toulouse, Lyon… for me, it’s not the name that counts,” he is quoted as saying by the official Nice website.

“We should carry ourselves the same way every weekend. 

“I don’t think of things in terms of big matches or small matches. I just want to win every one.

“I’m fit. It [playing on Sunday] is up to the manager, of course.”