COPPA ITALIA: ROSSONERE PUNISHED BY JUVE
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It was an afternoon to forget for Maurizio Ganz's Rossonere. AC Milan were beaten 6-1 by Juventus in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final. The Bianconere are thus well in the driving seat for the second leg, which will take place on a date to be confirmed between 30 April and 1 May. The scoreline didn't quite reflect the true nature of the match as, up until the Bianconere's fourth goal, AC Milan had created plenty of chances against a much more clinical Juventus side.
The guests then rampaged to a six-goal lead, scoring three times in six minutes before Thomas scored a consolation goal in added time. This will be a difficult one to take for the Rossonere, who will now be focusing on a tough run-in in the league as they look to claw their way back to second place and a crucial Champions League qualification spot. Their next fixture will be key in the fight for European football as the Rossonere travel to Roma on Saturday at 14:30 CET. This represents a massive opportunity to make a dent in the Giallorosse's current five-point lead.
CHECK OUT THE GALLERY FROM AC MILAN V JUVENTUS
REPORT
The match began in an intense fashion at Vismara, with Longo and Bergamaschi looking particularly threatening for an AC Milan side that were showing some good signs in attack. However, Juventus took the lead with their first chance of the match as Girelli found the net from Bonansea’s corner (9’). The Rossonere were quick to respond: in the twelfth minute, Peyraud-Magnin kept out Thomas’s attempt. After a very lively opening 15 minutes, the game started to calm down somewhat, with AC Milan controlling possession and Juve defending diligently and ready to strike on the counter. This is exactly what they did on the 30-minute mark, when a Bianconere break ended with Nildén finishing off Pedersen’s assist. Before the half-time whistle, Bergamaschi had a chance to reduce the arrears, but she wasn’t able to connect with the ball from close range.
AC Milan started the second half positively: Longo’s left-footed shot went past the post in the 47th minute; then, five minutes later, Codina had two opportunities from two consecutive Rossonere corners, with Girelli making a headed goal-line clearance to preserve the visitors’ two-goal advantage. At the other end, the same Italy centre-forward made it 3-0 after 62 minutes: her powerful right-footed strike left Giuliani with no chance. The Juve defence were forced to make further goal-saving interventions to deny Tucceri (67’) and Adami (72’), before Bergamaschi (73’) called Peyraud-Magnin into action. The French goalkeeper produced another stop in the 81st minute, keeping out a powerful right-footed effort from the substitute Stapelfeldt. Then, three minutes later, the away side well and truly put the game to bed: after Giuliani had thwarted Zamanian, Rosucci was there to convert the rebound. The final few minutes saw Bonfantini bag two goals on the counter and Thomas score a consolation following yet another AC Milan corner. Full-time.
MATCH DETAILS
AC MILAN 1-6 JUVENTUS
AC MILAN (3-4-3): Giuliani; Codina, Agard, Fusetti (71' Stapelfeldt); Thrige, Adami (78' Selimhodzic), Grimshaw, Tucceri Cimini; Thomas, Longo, Bergamaschi. Subs.: Babb, Cazzioli; Árnadóttir; Dal Brun, Premoli; Cortesi, Miotto. Coach: Ganz.
JUVENTUS (4-3-3): Peyraud-Magnin; Lundorf (64' Hyyrynen), Gama, Sembrant, Boattin; Cernoia (70' Zamanian), Pedersen (81' Caruso), Grosso (81' Rosucci); Bonansea (64' Bonfantini), Girelli, Nildén. Subs.: Aprile, Forcinella; Hurtig, Panzeri. Coach: Montemurro.
Referee: Bitorni from Bologna.
Goals: 9' and 62' Girelli (J), 31' Nildén (J), 84' Rosucci (J), 88' and 90' Bonfantini (J), 93' Thomas (M).
Booked: 41' Pedersen (J), 75' Tucceri Cimini (M).
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