Mario Balotelli 'snubbed' by Nicki Minaj in favour of Nando's

Minaj chooses chicken dinner over meeting

Wednesday 24th October 2012 by Grace Carroll | Photos by WENN

Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli was left disappointed (and more than a little surprised, we imagine) after being rejected backstage at a gig by Nicki Minaj.

The footballer, and apparently several of his teammates, headed backstage after Nicki's Manchester concert in order to meet the 'Starships' singer.

Mario was apparently very excited - so much so that he'd even bought a camera especially for it. The footballer and friends waited around for a while before being told that Nicki was just too tired to meet him, and wanted to get some Nando's chicken instead.

A source told The Sun: "Mario was gutted. He's a big fan and turned up with gifts along with his other Man City team-mates.

"But Nicki was too tired after the gig and feasted on a massive Nando's order instead - so he went home disappointed. He'd even bought a camera especially."

Probably listening to 'Super Bass' on those lovely pink headphones of his...

It's a good job that someone has Nicki as their favourite though - the star hasn't been too popular lately. Due to her reported feud with fellow American Idol judge Mariah Carey, a whole host of other celebrities have been siding with Mariah.

Example spoke out about Nicki earlier this month, saying he 'wasn't a fan'. The rapper told The Sun, "I’ve met Minaj. I’m not a fan. I don’t think you can be that much of a diva unless you’ve had loads of massive tunes.

"In ten years, people are going to be struggling to remember anything Minaj has done except her verse on 'Monster'."

Not quite as extreme as Stevie Nicks, who admitted she would have "strangled [Nicki] to death" if on the American Idol set. And even the President of the United States admitted that he prefers Mariah.