Balotelli was sent off for swearing at referee Tony Chapron during the win at Lorient last weekend, the second red card of his Ligue 1 career so far.

And agent Mino Raiola told RMC: "I have already found the solution -- we're going to cut his tongue out.

"To play football, you don't need a tongue, so we're going to cut it out.

"Seriously though, he knows he made a big mistake -- he has no excuses. It's something he knows he has to improve. He's sad for himself and the team."

Balotelli must now serve a one-match ban, which means he will miss the league game against Montpellier on Friday.

His nine goals in 14 league games have kept his club in the title race, and victory over Montpellier would take them level on points with leaders Monaco.

But Raiola refused to be drawn on whether his client would stay beyond the one-year deal he signed.

"It's still too early to talk about that," he said. "The most important thing is to have three positive months for him, the team and the people of Nice.

"After that, we'll have a lot of time to talk about his future."