Or is it?

It's been the footballer's food of choice for years, but it looks like our favourite citrus fruit could be in for a spell on the bench.

On in its place comes an exotic new talent from the far east. Full of flair and bursting with energy, this fruit is certain to give its team-mates a lift.

And its name? Mangifera indica - the mango.

New research has found the tropical fruit to be the ultimate half-time reviver.

It has three times as much carbohydrate (the body's main energy source) as oranges and gets energy to the muscles a fifth faster.

But don't just think about mangoes at half-time. This extremely tasty and versatile fruit can be eaten before or after any sport, and as part of your breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert.

Or how about making a smoothie?

Mix up your mango with a banana, some raspberries and a dollop of low fat fromage-frais and you've got a delicious drink rich in slow release fruit sugars - the perfect energy boost!

Here's what you need:

1 mango, peeled and stoned
75g/3oz raspberries
1 banana
200g/7oz low-fat fromage-frais, or 150g/5oz natural or soya yoghurt or 75ml/3oz cold milk

Puree the whole lot together until smooth and drink.

The BBC food website has loads of other great ideas for mango-based meals. The link on the right hand side of the page will take you there.

Enjoy!

Mango-mania

The mango has been grown in India since 200BC or earlier There are over 400 varieties of mango throughout the world Over 20m tonnes of mangoes are grown in the tropics and sub-tropics In the UK we buy £20m worth of mangoes per year

FROM THE BBC >>
::	BBC Food website