By Brian Homewood GENEVA (Reuters) - Italy striker Mario Balotelli left his Brazil counterpart Neymar in the shadows as he capped an inspiring performance with a majestic goal in a 2-2 international friendly draw on Thursday. Balotelli curled an unstoppable shot past Julio Cesar as Italy recovered from 2-0 down at halftime to deny Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari his first win since being reappointed for a second stint in November.

(Adds details, Balotelli fine) Feb 26 (Reuters) - Inter Milan have been fined 50,000 euros ($66,100) after fans racially abused their former player Mario Balotelli in Sunday's derby with AC Milan, Serie A's disciplinary commissioner said in a statement on Tuesday. Balotelli, himself, has been fined 10,000 euros for an "insulting gesture" towards Inter fans at the end of the 1-1 draw.

AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri praised striker Mario Balotelli's resolve in the face of racist taunting during a tense Milan derby which finished 1-1 on Sunday. Both clubs had fears that Balotelli's first derby since his playing days for Inter would lead to ugly taunting of the striker, who recently signed for the club from Manchester City. And although the match was relatively incident-free, some fans in the "Curva Nord" end of the San Siro where Inter's hardcore fans traditionally sit were seen waving inflatable bananas during the game.

(Adds details) MILAN, Feb 15 (Reuters) - A stunning Mario Balotelli free-kick gave AC Milan a 2-1 win over mid-table Parma in Serie A on Friday that put them level with third-placed Lazio and a point ahead of rivals Inter Milan in the race for European places. Balotelli's strike 13 minutes from time capped a bustling display by the controversial forward and sealed the points for Massimiliano Allegri's side after an own goal from home defender Gabriel Paletta in the 39th set them on their way to victory.