Balotelli's not some sort of genius with the ball. The intrigue with him was always the fact that he could play as a true #9 target man but he still had great skill on the ball. He could win physical battles and still have enough skill to take free kicks, for example. He was something of a modern CF when there weren't that many around. Nowadays, it's changing a bit and there are more #9 target men who can play with the ball.
When he first hit the scene with Inter it was like, "Whoa check out this big striker they got. He is big, fast and strong but watch him take these free kicks too! Now watch these fancy flicks, he can do it all!"
But in reality his production has never been there. I would say he has some talent but he is not super talented. He just had a lot of tools that were intriguing. It was like a rare combination of physical traits and some skill that provided that allure. I wouldn't say he does any one thing exceptionally well but he had no real weaknesses except for work rate.
You couldn't say, "Oh he's just some big oaf who can't pass or can't run." He could and maybe he still can do everything reasonably well. He can run, pass, shoot, hold up the ball, win headers, etc. It's just he doesn't do anything remarkably well where you know for sure how to use him best.