Platt praises ice cold Balotelli

Manchester City assistant manager David Platt hailed the composure of Mario Balotelli for netting the winning penalty against Tottenham.

The striker was fouled in the 94th minute by Spurs skipper Ledley King and had no qualms taking the spot-kick himself, coolly slotting the ball past Brad Friedel to seal a crucial 3-2 win for City.

After the game, Platt told reporters: “He is not afraid to take penalties, he is willing to miss. He is a very, very cool penalty taker and I was confident he would put it away and not let the occasion get to him.”

Balotelli had been involved in controversy earlier in the match as Spurs claimed he stamped on the head of midfielder Scott Parker following challenge between the pair.

However, Platt claimed he had not seen conclusive evidence of the incident and felt there was little in it watching live.

“To be honest I have not seen the incident. I certainly didn’t think there was anything in it watching live,” he said. “If there was something, different angles on TV can show different things.”

City had earlier squandered a 2-0 lead in a frenetic nine minute period when four goals were scored, and Platt was impressed with how his side responded.

“It was an amazing game. The first 45 minutes was very tactical but we managed to get our noses in front at 2-0,” he said.

“Regardless of the fact it’s a great victory, the manager is not happy with the gift of the first goal. It was a lapse in concentration.”

“The second 45 minutes can be summed up in that last two minutes. We thought we were dead and buried and Defoe was going to put it into an empty net.”

“There are still plenty of games left and plenty of points to go for. It’s a great victory but the value is still three points.”

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp was livid that Balotelli escaped punishment for the stamp on Parker, and said the loss would make it tough for Spurs to win the title.

“Having looked at it, it’s not the first time he (Balotelli) has done that is it? And I’m sure it won’t be the last,” Redknapp said.

“He was annoyed he didn”t win the challenge and now Scott has a nasty cut on his face.”

“I have got my own opinions. I don’t like people kicking people in the head on the football pitch. What reason did he have to backheel Scott in the head? It’s not a nice thing to do.”

“We are not a million miles behind Man City but now there’s obviously lots of points between us.”