Coppa Italia Round of 16 Overview: Trophy Up for Grabs as Defending Champions Inter Milan Bomb Out
The Coppa Italia Round of 16 brought unexpected results and even more uncertainty as defending champions Inter Milan crashed out at home in extra time against Bologna in December last year. As for fellow contenders AC Milan and Juventus, they swept their lesser oppositions with 4-1 and 6-1 respective scorelines to start the year. As for last year’s runner-up, Fiorentina, they had to dig deep against Serie B side Parma in the final seven minutes to earn a draw before qualifying through the next round of the Coppa Italia in a penalty shootout. Roma, Frosinone, Lazio, Atalanta and Bologna would also join the three in the last 8.
Juventus and AC Milan Breezed Through their Coppa Italia Round of 16 Tie
As mentioned earlier, Juventus and AC Milan decimated their lesser opponents in the Coppa Italia Round of 16 to start 2024, as Juve had five different scorers in their 6-1 win against Salernitana today while Luka Jović rolled back the years for the Rossoneri in their 4-1 dominance against Cagliari yesterday.
The prospect of a trophy is a pleasing sight for their supporters, as it looked doomed at the start of the season for them, with both teams struggling for consistent performances. For example, Juve did not qualify for this season’s UEFA Champions League after a disastrous 22-23, which saw The Italian Football Federation deduct 15 points from them due to transfer dealings before eventually overturning the decision. However, Juve did pay a ten-point deduction due to involvement with another scandal, which caused them a Champions League spot.
As for AC Milan, the Rossoneri had a rough start to the season as Inter Milan humiliated them 5-1 before they crashed out in this Champions League season group of death. However, with this resurgence of winning four of their last five games, including a 2-1 away win against Newcastle and a 4-1 thumping in the Coppa Italia, the prospect of securing their first Coppa Italia since 02-03 looks doable.
Roma, Fiorentina, Frosinone and Atalanta Hoped to Play Spoilers in the Last 8
If you are a betting man, it is hard to go against a team managed by José Mourinho in a knockout tie. The Special One has done wonders for Roma, as they secured the first-ever Europa Conference League title in 2022. Roma went on their brilliant run the season after in the Europa League, with them narrowingly missing out on the trophy to the kings of the cup, Sevilla.
In their current season, barring the Coppa Italia, the I Giallorossi has struggled for consistency. For instance, they are now only 7th in Serie A and qualify only in second place in their Europa Conference group. However, when it gets to crunch time, Mourinho always has a way to win.
As for the other notable teams that qualified for the Last 8 of the Coppa Italia, last year’s runner-up Fiorentina scraped past Parma on penalties, and they will now face Bologna, the surprise package that kicked defending Coppa Italia champions Inter Milan out in extra time. However, if you want to talk about the most surprising result in the Round of 16 Coppa Italia, it is definitely Frosinone’s 4-0 away destruction of defending Serie A champions Napoli. The former Serie B champions would hope to cause more havoc in the next stage as they visit the Allianz Stadium.
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