The Coppa Italia Frecciarossa is down to the last four teams. While Milan and Inter were drawn together in one half of the draw, cup pedigree comes to the fore in Juve’s meeting with Fiorentina.
The two teams that meet on Wednesday evening at the Artemio Franchi stadium have shared 20 Coppa Italia titles through the years, and since the year 2000 have appeared in 11 finals combined.
Fiorentina’s most recent success in Italy’s national cup competition dates back to the turn of the millenium against Parma, when the final was played over two legs. Juventus, meanwhile, are the defending champions after last May’s victory over Atalanta.
The only home and away encounter in the current format of the tournament is the semi-finals. Exactly as it was the last time the two teams clashed for a place in the final, in 2015, when Juventus welcomed the Viola for the first leg. On March 5 in Turin, a 22-year-old Mohamed Salah made the headlines with the kind of scintillating performance that has now become his trademark. His brace, either side of a Fernando Llorente goal, gave the visitors a 2-1 advantage.
One month later in Florence, Juventus had already overturned the deficit before half time through goals from Alessandro Matri and Roberto Pereyra. Leonardo Bonucci put the result beyond doubt on the hour mark as Massimiliano Allegri outfoxed his opposite number Vincenzo Montella on the way to a league and cup double in his first season in charge of the Bianconeri.
This season Allegri once more comes face to face with an upcoming coaching talent in Vincenzo Italiano. The 44 year old, who took charge of Fiorentina in the summer, has crossed paths with Allegri just once, this season in Serie A. On 6 November, Juan Cuadrado came off the bench to score a 91st minute winner that sent the Allianz Stadium into raptures.
The second match-up is another unpredictable affair, and not only as a consequence of the spate of injuries that has inflicted the Bianconeri. Allegri is without nine first-team players for the trip to Florence after Denis Zakaria joined the queue outside of the treatment room. The Juve tactician played down the gravity of the situation when he commented after Saturday’s win against Empoli that, “There are only eight treatment tables. It looks like we’ll have to add an extra one.”
On the other hand, Fiorentina come into the match having had the opportunity to rest some key players, Nico Gonzalez in particular, against Sassuolo in Serie A at the weekend.
Also, the Viola’s cup form has been exceptional so far. After defeating Benevento 2-1 in Round 2 in December, the Tuscan outfit travelled to the Diego Maradona stadium in January for the Round of 16. What resulted was a seven-goal thriller, three of which in extra time, three sendings off, and progress to the quarter finals after a 5-2 triumph.
The tournament’s 13th seed then took on last season’s defeated finalists and again emerged victorious. The 3-2 victory against Atalanta was decided in the 94th-minute by Nikola Milenkovic.
Milenkovic is expected to return to the starting line-up after sitting out weekend league action because of suspension. The defender will be tasked with marking his fellow Serbia international teammate, Dusan Vlahovic.
Vlahovic returns to face the team that launched him in Italy. 49 goals in 108 matches from season 2018/19 to the January transfer window. In his time at Fiorentina, only one player made more appearances for the Viola, Milenkovic.
Both Belgrade-born with a past at Partizan together in their teenage years, Vlahovic and Milenkovic line up on opposite sides for the first time. Vlahovic does not expect any favours from his compatriot, or the Artemio Franchi faithful. But such is Dusan’s desire to succeed that should he play, he will do all that is within his powers to add to his four goals so far in the shirt of Juventus - or five considering the deflected winner against Sassuolo in the last round of the cup that set up his return to Florence.