Perturbed by Aguero's 'stupid' injury, Mancini refuses to trust Balotelli

London, Mar 31(ANI): Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is in a quandary after Sergio Aguero's cryptic foot injury ruled him out of Saturday's clash against Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium, and now, he refuses to trust striker Mario Balotelli.

City know they can leapfrog rivals Manchester United at the top of the league table on goal difference if they win their match against Sunderland.

When questioned, Mancini couldn't give a straight reply on Aguero's foot injury.

"I don't know what's happened with Sergio. It's better that we don't talk about this. Why? Because I prefer this - I prefer, I don't say nothing. For us, it's a big problem because we lost Sergio against Stoke, and today, he can't play," The Telegraph quoted Mancini, as saying.

"We hope he can recover for Arsenal, but I don't know if it is possible. It is a stupid injury, but not his fault. It didn't happen at home, it happened here [at the training ground]," he added.

As a result, out of favor Edin Dzeko is likely to pair up with Balotelli, as Carlos Tevez is still not fit enough to start a match.

Mancini conceded he is unable to trust the Italian forward to deliver.

"No, I don't trust Mario. No, never, but Mario is like this. I don't think anyone can trust Mario, but he is a top player, and he can do everything. He could easily score two goals today or in the next game at Arsenal. But we can't trust him," Mancini said.

"He can score three goals, he can take a red card. He can be important for us in the last eight games," he added. (ANI)