Juventus held Inter Milan to a goalless draw in the 2nd leg of their Italian Cup tie to go through to the final.
The Bianconeri put up a solid and resolute performance at the back to keep a clean sheet that saw them qualify for the final on aggregate after a top performance in the first leg at San Siro where the Italian champions won 2-1 after Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a brace to secure the victory for the side.
Andrea Pirlo’s Juventus side came into the game as firm favourites to go through as even a 1-0 loss would have seen them go through on the away goal rule. Inter did not test Gianluigi Buffon much despite the return of striker Romelu Lukaku amongst the Inter ranks.
Romelu Lukaku (right) failed to have any impact on the game. (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)
The Nerazzurri failed to really challenge Juve who looked very comfortable sitting on their first leg advantage. Cristiano Ronaldo was denied on a couple of occasions by Samir Handanovic who pulled off brilliant saves to keep Internazionale’s hopes alive.
Juventus have gone unbeaten since their loss to Inter Milan themselves in the Serie A, last month, with Pirlo getting the current league holders back into league contention again. Now through to the cup final, they will be hoping to end the season with at least the Italian double.
The side has conceded just 1 goal since that loss and will look to push on. This form could be vital going into the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League as they play FC Porto in the round of 16. Pirlo’s side will start dreaming of a potential treble if all goes well domestically in Italy.
Inter no match for Juve
Inter have failed to win at Juventus since November 2012 and it was no different when the two Italian giants faced off in the 2nd leg of the 2020/21 Coppa Italia.
Lukaku and Hakimi, who missed the first leg, were back for Inter Milan but failed to have any telling impact on the side. Inter had 21 shots in the game but only managed 3 on target and none really tested veteran Gigi Buffon in goal.
Inter had 10 corners in the game but they were no match for the Juventus line-up that has such a strong aerial presence and could not get any of them to materialize into something.
Gianluigi Buffon (L) and Giorgio Chiellini of Juventus bump fists as they keep another clean sheet. (Photo by Chris Ricco/Getty Images)
It was the home team that had the best chances with Ronaldo coming very close to scoring in the 64th minute after Weston McKinnie played a lovely through pass to the Portugal captain who was stopped by Handanovic, pulling off a terrific save.
5 minutes later, it was Ronaldo with an attempt again as he skipped passed Milan Skriniar and Nicolo Barella to bullet one goalward to be denied by the big Slovenian number 1.
Inter just seemed to be no match for Juventus on the day as the Old Lady secured its place in the final that will take place in Rome. Juve awaits the winner between Atalanta and Napoli.
