Mario Balotelli has been dropped from the Nice squad for their Ligue 1 match with Toulouse.
Balotelli is absent from the 18-man group named by coach Patrick Vieira for Friday’s clash.
A statement on Nice’s website announcing the squad said only that Balotelli was absent due to Vieira’s decision.Balotelli missed pre-season with Nice as his future with the club was unclear, Marseille among the teams linked with signing the striker.
Balotelli has made two Ligue 1 starts this season and was on the bench for Nice’s last match, a 3-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain.
The striker came off at the bench in that defeat but is yet to score this season, having hit 33 league goals across two previous campaigns with Nice. Former Inter Milan and Manchester City striker Balotelli relaunched his stuttering career with the southern Ligue 1 side, to the extent it earned him a recall to the Italy squad.
The striker was subject to a traansfer away from the club in the summer, possibly to fellow Ligue 1 club Marseille but the move didi not materialize.