GERMANS THRASHED BLACK AND BLUE
FINAL WHISTLE Balotelli blasts a brace to send Italy into the final
Mario Balotelli (20th minute and 36th minute) Ever since the Euro began, Italian emotions had been suppressed in a volatile bottle called Balotelli. On Thursday they exploded, blowing the cork straight into the faces of the superstrong Germans. ‘Super Mario,’ often caught napping in the field, suddenly turned lightning and struck twice inside 36 minutes to knock Joachim Loew’s men onto the floor much before half-time. Then, Italian coach Cesare Prandelli promptly locked up his defence and threw the key away to ensure a 2-1 victory that earned the Azzuri a title clash with defending champions Spain. The semifinal at a charged National Stadium was a quintessential Balotelli show. Early on, the Manchester City striker showed signs that his game was sliding — he literally slipped on the field a couple of times and ambled about. But that was the feint before the fatal blows were delivered, one with his shaven head and the other with his lethal right foot that German custodian Manuel Neuer could do nothing about.
The first (in the 20th minute) was nodded in from close range and the second (in the 36th) was a powerful blast from just inside the box. The celebration was typical of the 21-year-old striker, who had been the target of racial abuse from rival fans during the tournament and apparently by the German supporters earlier in Thursday’s game as his quick look back at them after being heckled for slipping suggested.
The Italian whipped off his shirt in front of the hordes of fire-breathing Germans to show more of his well-toned body, flexed his muscles and struck an irate pose that clearly stated that he deserved better respect for his tremendous talent and was proud of the colour of his skin. The scowl on his face dared his tormentors to a physical fight — he would take all of them on, alone. That was a bottled-up Balotelli saying so much without speaking even as his teammate Leonardo Bonucci wasn’t around this time to keep a tab on his lips.
If Balotelli was the warrior upfront, Andrea Pirlo was the workhorse who charted lines of attack from the midfield. The German centre was shackled thanks to the Italian veteran who summoned all his experience to skillfully slice open the opposition’s heart. It was only a matter of time before blood supply was blocked. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was the other hero.
With the game slipping away, German boss Loew was forced to pull out Mario Gomez at half-time and replace him with Miroslav Klose. No luck, barring a few attempts that landed safely in Buffon’s bosom or sailed over the bar. The motor in the German machine had broken down.
An injury time goal from a penalty kick taken by Mesut Ozil cut down the goal deficit to just one and breathed life back into the game but it was too late.
The Italian job was very well done.