Brendan Rodgers concedes he never really clicked with Mario

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Brendan Rodgers concedes he never really clicked with Mario Balotelli when the pair where at Liverpool. The Celtic boss was responding to the Italian internationals comments that he had the biggest disappointment with Rodgers when the 26-year-old was asked about his former coaches.Rodgers brought the former Inter Milan and Manchester City player to Anfield in August 2014 in a surprise transfer from AC Milan but the move never worked out and he joined Nice in the summer. Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers The Northern Irishman, who has made an impressive start to his stewardship at Celtic Park, reflected that the pair had a strained relationship following Balotellis criticism in an interview.He was probably absolutely spot on, Rodgers told talkSPORT. I just couldnt really connect with Mario.He was one that came in very late in the window. It was a gamble taken from a club perspective.It was one where, hes a big talent, hell come in and develop, hes got all the tools. In all fairness, I just find it very difficult to connect with Mario. Mario Baloteli has made a great start at Nice On the field, he tried his best. But yeah, it certainly wasnt something that worked out as everyone would like.If you sit with him in the office, the guys a good fella, a good guy. If he could ever match that intensity with his talent, then hed be one of the best players in the world.On the field, it was something that never worked out. That season was difficult for us.But now I hope hes got a club that might be a final chance over in France. But hopefully it can work out for him.Balotelli has made an impressive start to the season with Nice, scoring six league goals to guide them to the top of Ligue 1.Upgrade to Sky Sports now to watch Man Utd v Arsenal this Saturday and get the first six months half price! Also See: Celtic video Celtic fixtures Celtic stats Get ￡10 free bet! 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Traditional Korean food was on the menu, but Ryu credited the company, rather than the cuisine, for her strong start. "We had a talk together to help us relax," Ryu said. "Sometimes when youre hanging out with really good friends, it can make you more relaxed and enjoy the golf. Today, I really enjoyed my golf. That comes from great friendship." Ryus 63 was one shy of the tournament record, and her 9-under-par tied the best mark, set in 2009 by Song-Hee Kim. The 24-year-old hit nine birdies and played a bogey-free round. Choi chipped in three times during her morning round, and her 8 under looked like it would stand up until Ryu got hot on the back nine. Choi knew she chipped in twice from inside of 10 yards and once from a bunker 25 yards away but had to check her scorecard to figure out how many birdies she hit. "I felt good about my game, but I didnt really realize I had five birdies in a row," Choi said. "I didnt really think about I want to birdie every hole." Choi credits Canadian manager Greg Morrison for her love of and strong play in Canada. Her career-best round of 62 came in last years Manulife Financial LPGA at the Grey Silo Golf Course in Waterloo, Ontario. When Ryu saw Chois score before she teed off, she thought 3 under would be a realistic goal for her. "But I shot 9 under, so Im more happy," Ryu said with a smile. Swede Anna Nordqvist, who was playing with and pushed along by Ryu, was alone in third at 7 under. "She made nine birdies today and I made seven," Nordqvist said. "It gives you a lot of momentum or a lot of positive energy just seeing a lot of birdies." Park, who lamented missing a few 5- or 6-foot putts, was part of a group at 6 under along with Azahara Munoz, Danielle Kang and Xi Yu Lin. Other than that, she called it a "perfect round." "Ball-striking was almost perfect," Park said. "Everything as pretty much right on line. These greens, they didnt have much breaks in them, but I misread them, a couple of them. Hopefully Ill play a little bit better tomorrow and hole some more putts." Park predicted that, given the conditions of the course, she would have to be more than 20-under par to win this tournament. Choi didnt think that was realistic until she wrapped up. "Actually I was thinking like under 15," Choi said. "But after my score today, which means -- if I shoot like 8 under, I think everyone could shoot like 8-under, so we will see." Choi left at least one shot on the course, too, as her birdie putt on No. 9 -- her final hole of the day -- lipped out. A tie for the lead mightve done wonders for a player who hasnt won a tournament since the 2012 U.S. Open. Ryu hasnt won in two years, so the two friends can try to help each otheer through.dddddddddddd "We kind of talk about how can we get through this one, how do we think about this situation," Ryu said. "I realize Im not the only (one going) through the hard time. That kind of conversation makes me more relieved." If Ryu and Choi manage to keep up this play through the weekend, one of them might pick up the tab at the next team dinner. "Im glad to buy a dinner for them," Ryu said. "I havent won any tournaments the last two years so Ive been waiting. I wish I can win this week." The only all-Canadian group at the Canadian Pacific Womens Open got more than polite golf claps from the many fans who followed them throughout the first round. "They clapped for everything," Brooke Henderson said. "It was awesome. The support out there was amazing." Buoyed by that support, Jennifer Kirby had the best day of any Canadian with a 5-under 67, while Henderson and Rebecca Lee-Bentham each shot 2 under. Inside the ropes, Kirby said playing with two friends made her feel "comfortable." The Paris, Ont., native was able to play it safe and still hole five birdies. "Bogey-free round, took advantage of the par 5s for the most part and hit it close on a few and didnt really make any big mistakes," Kirby said. Kirby goes into Fridays morning tee time four strokes behind leader So Yeon Ryu, who set a new course record at the London Hunt and Country Club with her 9-under 63. Henderson, the 16-year-old amateur phenom, and Lee-Bentham arent far off the pace. There was plenty of pressure on Henderson going into the tournament, but she showed no signs of cracking Thursday. "I hit the ball great all day," the Smiths Falls, Ont., native said. "I hit a lot of greens and had a lot of opportunities for birdie. They didnt fall today but hopefully over the next couple of days theyll make up for it." Lee-Bentham, whos from Toronto, said she "felt a lot of love" from the crowd all day. "Its more than usual, so it was more fun out there," she said. A few other Canadians were able to have fun without stressing about playing in front of home-country fans. Amateur Elizabeth Tong of Thornhill, Ont., and Sara-Maude Juneau of Fossambault, Que., joined Henderson and Lee-Bentham at 2 under. Tong, whos going back to school at the University of Indiana next week, just qualified Monday and called being in the tournament a bonus. "That beat my expectations," Tong said of her first round. "I was just looking to shoot like around par, keep it together, because I definitely knew people were going to shoot like 64, 65 the whole day. Just keep myself in there because the main goal is to make the cut, if anything. I think I put myself in a good position there." Sue Kim from Langley, B.C., was the only other Canadian of the 15 in the tournament to be under par at 1 under. Alena Sharp (Hamilton) and amateur Jennifer Ha (Calgary) shot an even-par 72; Lorie Kane (Charlottetown), Maude-Aimee LeBlanc (Sherbrooke, Que.) and Erica Rivard (Tecumseh, Ont.) shot 73; Samantha Richdale (Kelowna, B.C.) and Nicole Vandermade (Brantford, Ont.) shot 74 and Jessica Wallace (Langley) and Natalie Gleadall (Stratford, Ont.) shot 75. ' ' '