Juventus vs AC Milan: Can the Rossoneri end 35-year long hoodoo in Turin?
AC Milan will be desperate to end a 35-year long hoodoo when they face Juventus in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia on Friday.
The long-awaited second leg of this clash will finally get underway after a three-month hiatus. Football, as well as all sports in Italy and elsewhere, were forced to go on pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic which broke out in Wuhan, China, and rapidly spread worldwide. With Italy being one of the hardest-hit countries, the nation effectively went on lockdown for months as the government battled to contain the contagion, but now with things starting to show signs of improvement, football has been allowed to resume.
Still, there is an air of uncertainty about things, and the remaining Coppa Italia matches will be taking place behind closed doors in an effort to try to further contain COVID-19 from spreading and keep everyone safe.
In any case, the first leg of the semi-finals clash between Juventus and AC Milan finished as a one-all draw at the Stadio San Siro. Milan thought they had earned a narrow 1-0 victory through Ante Rebic before Cristiano Ronaldo struck back via a late penalty to give the Bianconeri a vital away goal and an advantage heading into the second leg in Turin.
This is what makes things that much more tricky for the Rossoneri. For starters, they have historically struggled at Juve’s home ground, where they have not won in a Serie A match since March 2011. And when one takes a look at their Coppa Italia record, the stats look even more daunting. The last time Milan were able to beat Juventus in Turin in a Coppa Italia tie was back in June 1985. That’s well before many of the players who will be featuring in Friday’s match were even born; Cristiano Ronaldo himself was just four months old.
Milan boss Stefano Pioli has his own frustrating record when it comes to facing Juventus – he has never beaten La Vecchia Signora in 19 prior attempts, recording four draws and 15 losses across his managerial career. To complicate matters, he will have to make do without veteran striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is out with a calf injury, and even if the Swedish superstar weren’t injured, he wouldn’t be able to play due to a ban. The visitors are also missing Theo Hernandez and Samu Castillejo as well due to suspension, and sit in seventh place in the table. While a European football spot isn’t entirely out of reach – they are only three points behind sixth-placed Napoli – the Coppa Italia could represent their most realistic chance at securing a spot in European competition next season. Unfortunately for them, Juventus stand in their way. And after Juventus, they will have to face either Inter or Napoli in the final – two teams who are equally keen on winning this trophy as it presents the only likely piece of silverware they can get their hands on this season.
Juventus, for their part, are locked in an interesting battle with Lazio for the Scudetto. Most never really figured the Aquile could keep on going, but they are still stubbornly clinging on to second spot, just one place behind the Bianconeri. Maurizio Sarri will want to wrap things up in the Coppa Italia quickly and turn his attention back to Serie A and the Champions League, so expect La Vecchia Signora to try to get an early goal and then hang on for the win on Friday. The pause has allowed the hosts to recover key players like Giorgio Chiellini and Sami Khedira, but only the latter – Khedira – is likely to feature here as Sarri likes to rotate his squad for cup matches. That means that veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will also get a nod in between the posts.
Cristiano Ronaldo, of course, will be in the starting XI, along with Paulo Dybala. Gonzalo Higuain is reportedly struggling with some fitness issues so won’t be played here, especially with Juventus returning to league action soon, so Douglas Costa will be deployed in the line-up.
For all intents and purposes, this game looks firmly advantage Juventus. Even if they don’t score and it finishes scoreless, the Bianconeri are through to the final. Of course, if Milan manage to score, then things will get a lot more interesting. Will the Rossoneri manage to end their 35-year long hoodoo on Friday? Anything certainly is possible, as both teams haven’t played in three months, and stranger things have happened. No one expected COVID-19 to be unleashed on the world and disrupt life as we know it, but it happened. So, while Milan are definitely facing an uphill battle in Turin, Juventus will not be taking anything for granted, that’s for certain.
