Mario Balotelli to undergo surgery in Milan for cartilage damage

Yesterday news broke that new Mancini signing Mario Balotelli would probably miss another game, this one against Blackburn: 

Mario Balotelli's hopes of making his home debut for Manchester City on Saturday are receding after the latest tests on his knee injury.

Balotelli, signed for £22.5m from Internazionale last month, has missed the last three games and the club's medical staff are increasingly pessimistic about the chances of him playing against Blackburn Rovers this weekend.

Now it looks as if Balotelli will be out for a more extended period. Per Daniel Taylor of the Guardian:

Mario Balotelli having operation in Milan on damaged knee cartilage tomorrow, story on Guardian website shortly    

UPDATE: Taylor reports that Balotelli will be out a month or more. Do you think Mancini wishes he had bought another striker before the window closed? 

We'll have more on the story as it breaks, but for now it looks fortunate that Roque Santa Cruz was kept on the squad. No, he's not as good as 'Super Mario' - but he's a striker, and after Jo, Emmanuel Adebayor, and Carlos Tevez, Manchester City's ranks are thin.