Juventus secured a berth in the Italian Cup final despite a 2-1 defeat in the second leg of their semi-final against Lazio. The Turin giants advanced with a 3-2 aggregate victory, thanks to Arkadiusz Milik’s late strike.
Nursing a 2-0 first-leg advantage, Juventus found themselves trailing 2-0 on the night after Valentin Castellanos’ brace. The Argentinian forward headed Lazio in front with a thunderous header from a corner and doubled their lead with a low shot into the bottom corner shortly after the restart.
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri responded by bringing on forwards Timothy Weah and Milik, and the double change paid immediate dividends. Weah’s cross found Milik, who prodded home with his first touch on 83 minutes to settle Juve’s nerves.
The Turin side will now face either Atalanta or Fiorentina in the May 15 final, with the Florence outfit leading 1-0 before Wednesday’s return leg.
“We suffered against a good side, so we’re happy to be in the final,” said Milik. “We know we have to play better in the final, and we know we can play better.”
Juventus are bidding to win the Coppa Italia for the 15th time and despite only two wins in 12 matches are third in Serie A.
“The great satisfaction here is to have reached this final, it will boost us for the end of the league where we still need a few points to qualify for the Champions League,” said a relieved Allegri.
