LONDON: Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli has seemingly found a novel way of getting himself out of the constant glare of photographers' cameras - by stealing their lenses, reported The Metro.

Prankster Balotelli (pic) is no stranger to scandal, and his bizarre antics have made him the must have snap for paparazzi across the continent.

But the Italian may have stumbled across an unorthodox method of thwarting his pursuers, and took his opportunity to practice his new technique on an unassuming City photographer. 

Strolling through the Ethiad Stadium tunnel after a warm up prior to the season opener against Southampton over the weekend, the 22-year-old took a playful swipe at one of the in-house snappers who was taking his picture, and eventually managed to make off with her lenses following a brief struggle.

Needless to say the staffer saw the funny side of the altercation, but unfortunately didn’t seem to possess a high enough level of clearance to chase Balotelli all the way to the dressing room.

- mD