It was the night Mario Balotelli announced himself as a serious, grown-up footballer, capable of shaping the bigger occasions. There have been plenty of times he has threatened it before but he has never shown so much efficiency and clinical, sometimes devastating, centre-forward play, or the unmistakable sense that he is unwilling to jeopardise all that raw ability with something far less endearing.

The outcome is that Italy will meet Spain at the Olympic Stadium, Kiev, on Sunday whereas Germany are denied a 14th appearance in the final of a major tournament and will be able to testify, in great detail, what a formidable opponent Balotelli is when his mind is clear and his only motivation is to demonstrate those qualities of penetration, directness and powerful finishing.

His first-half goals gave Italy a lead that they cherished until Federico Balzaretti's handball conceded a stoppage-time penalty and, briefly, there was a late, desperate onslaught from a Germany side whose goalkeeper, Manuel Neuer, spent the last few minutes playing primarily as an auxiliary attacker.

Mesut Ozil put the ball past Gianluigi Buffon from the spot but the late drama did not transcend into anything more substantial. Italy had withstood some concerted second-half pressure but they also had enough chances on the break to have made it a more convincing victory.

On this evidence, Cesare Prandelli's team should represent difficult opponents for Spain, with Andrea Pirlo in imperious form again and Balotelli devastatingly effective before his substitution, with cramp, after 70 minutes. "Tonight was the most beautiful of my life, but I hope that this Sunday is even better," Balotelli said. "I've waited for this moment so long, and it was even more special given that my mother came to watch and I so wanted to make her happy.

"After the game I went over to her and said: 'Those goals are for you.'"

With Balotelli it is never easy to be sure of what happens next but if he approaches the final in the same state of mind,he could represent Italy's best chance of ending Spain's hegemony and winning this tournament for the first time since 1968.

His second goal, in particular, was a moment of individual brilliance and a reminder why Prandelli, in keeping with Roberto Mancini at Manchester City, believes Balotelli is worth the hassles and controversies and unpredictability that form part of the package.

There was still plenty for Balotelli to do after Riccardo Montolivo's long, diagonal ball had dissected the German defence but the manner in which he found the net demonstrated someone bristling with confidence. The shot was still rising as it went into the top left-hand corner of Neuer's goal, but it was the swing of the ball to take it away from the goalkeeper that was really striking. That, combined with ferocious power, made it a spectacular goal.

It is rare to see Germany sliced open so easily but there had already been signs, for Balotelli's first goal, that this would be a night when their usual efficiency in defence deserted them.

Towards the end, they were looking ragged and fortunate, perhaps, not to escape further punishment given the frequency with which Italy seemed to have an extra attacker.

Claudio Marchisio had two glorious opportunities to make it 3-0 only to put both chances wide. Antonio Di Natale, Balotelli's replacement, ran clear and drove his shot against the outside of a post. Daniele De Rossi beat Neuer only to be denied by an offside decision. Italy did far more than defend their lead; they counter-attacked with great vigour and adventure.

Germany had begun the game well but their night started to unravel as soon as Balotelli opened the scoring after 20 minutes. The goal began on the left with Antonio Cassano swivelling past Mats Hummels, eluding Jérôme Boateng in the process, then picking out Balotelli with a perfectly weighted cross. It was a wonderful piece of close control from Cassano, taking out two defenders in one movement, and Balotelli was quicker and more decisive than his marker, Holger Badstuber, to flash his header past Neuer.

This was the first time Joachim Löw's team had been behind in the tournament and it was perhaps their determination to get back into the match quickly that left them so vulnerable for the second goal. They will also reflect on some wasteful finishing and those chances early on when Andrea Barzagli allowed a corner to go across the six-yard area and Pirlo cleared Hummels' effort off the goal-line.

Soon afterwards Buffon, with a rare mistake, turned a cross into the path of Barzagli and was grateful that the ricochet took the ball a few inches wide. After that, however, the Italy goalkeeper was flawless.

What Germany needed was a quick response in the second half and they certainly put everything into trying to get back into the match. This was a night, however, when their erratic defending was combined with some generous finishing and that, together with Buffon's goalkeeping, Pirlo's expertise and Italy's robust defending, was enough to confirm the finest night of Balotelli's professional life.