The Azzurri defeated Germany, who had won all four of their previous games, 2-1 last night in Warsaw, Poland, in a game that will mark a decisive turning point for the team in the 2012 Euro Cup.
As the game began, Italian got early possession, but repeatedly lost the ball after carefully working it down the field to forward Mario Balotelli. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon kept his cool, deflecting three shots on goal as the Germans aggressively kept the game well inside Azzurri territory.
When the action moved to the German box, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer kept two shots on bay, but then Balotelli, up until now Italy's wildcard, sank Italy's first goal in the 20th minute. Shortly after, a breakaway lead him to a fast, hard kick with impeccable placement that brought the score to 2-0, where it remained throughout almost the entire game.
With barely two minutes remaining, Germany finally scored their first goal after an Italian handball in the penalty box, but they were unable to sink another one and force the game into overtime.
Spain narrowly won their semi-final match against Portugal on Wednesday after a scoreless game went into overtime and a shoot-out, which Spain won 4-2. The reigning defender of both the Euro Cup and World Cup titles, Spain was the top seed in the championship and has long been the favourite to win.
The Azzurri will go on to face Spain in the Euro Cup finals on Sunday, the first of July, at 7:45 pm CET in Kiev, Ukraine.
