Mario Balotelli was the subject of a racist remark by the president of his club on Monday in the latest discriminatory incident of a Serie A season marred by derogatory chants and other offensive behaviour.

Balotelli has struggled since returning to the Italian league with Brescia, his hometown club, and was dropped from the weekend’s match following a dispute with coach Fabio Grosso.

Asked about Balotelli on Monday, Brescia president Massimo Cellino said: “He's black, what can I say, he’s working on clearing himself but he’s having a lot of difficulty.”

Brescia later attempted to downplay Cellino’s comment, saying in a statement that it was merely "a quip" that was "clearly misunderstood." The club added that Cellino was "attempting to downplay the excessive media coverage by protecting (Balotelli)."