Micah Richards has said that he believes Mario Balotelli "became a target" at Liverpool when the team weren't playing well.

The controversial Italian has been linked with a summer move away from Anfield after scoring just four times since his £16m switch from AC Milan last year.

Despite his lack of form, Richards has given his backing to Balotelli, whom he played alongside for three years at City.

"I love Mario," Richards told the Daily Mail. "I still speak to him now. I think he's a great player too. At City he was probably still a bit immature. He then came back to Italy and developed more.

"He impressed at the World Cup, but now he's at a club where everyone seems to have an opinion. And when the team wasn't doing well, he's became a target."

Meanwhile, Richards has admitted that he is open to joining Inter Milan this summer following his loan spell at Fiorentina from City.