Nice boss Favre: Balotelli 'must work more' for teammates' respect

Mario Balotelli is enjoying a career-refreshing campaign on the Cote d'Azur with Nice, though according to Les Aiglons boss Lucien Favre, there's still work to do.

The Italian's brace against Lille on Friday gave him 13 on the season - one short of his career-best output with AC Milan in 2013-14 - and after failed spells with Liverpool and on his Rossoneri return, it's a massive term for the enigmatic striker.

Favre, who has before claimed his appreciation for Balotelli, is again highlighting the Palermo-born forward's virtues, while reminding him that there's always room for improvement, especially in garnering the respect of his teammates.

"Mario's a nice lad, we get along well," Favre told German outlet Der Tagesspiegel, courtesy of ESPN FC.

With prior instances of poor conduct while with Manchester City, notably a house fire caused by setting off fireworks indoors and an incident where he threw darts at the club's academy players, Balotelli has long been under the spotlight for his character issues.

"You need to distinguish Balotelli the person and Balotelli the forward," Favre added.

"He's a role model as a person, and regarding the forward ... his goals definitely help us, and Mario's played really well in the past few games."

Unequivocal in his praise of Balotelli, Favre insists the 33-time capped Azzurri is aware of his shortcomings, and that he must work towards refining his game as a means of garnering the deference of his colleagues. That came under question in February, when Nice's Valentin Eysseric complained of the Italian's mood swings.

"Mario knows best where his weaknesses are," Favre conceded. "He needs to make more and better runs. Mario must work more if he wants the long-term respect of his teammates.

"Scoring goals is not enough in modern football."