Cup holder Inter beats Juventus and reaches Coppa Italia final

Internazionale has advanced to the final of the battle for the Coppa Italia for the fifteenth time. The eight-time winner and current cup holder settled Wednesday night at home with Juventus: 1-0. The outward match had ended 1-1.

Inter had beaten Juventus in last year’s final (4-2 after extension), but had not yet beaten the record winner with 14 cups this season.

Milan’s supremacy was great before halftime, but it produced only one goal. Federico Dimarco scored from close range after a phenomenal cross from Nicolò Barella. Edin Dzeko also scored a fine goal, but it was disallowed for offside.

Even after halftime, Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana was hardly tested by the toothless Old Lady. At Inter, Denzel Dumfries started and Stefan de Vrij was on the bench, as was the much-discussed Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian striker received the necessary racist verbal abuse from the Juve fans in the outward match in Turin.

When Lukaku celebrated his exploited penalty for the 1-1 with his finger in front of his mouth in early April, he received his second yellow card for provocation. The suspension he received for that was overturned by the Italian Football Federation, as a signal against racism. As many as 171 Juventus supporters were issued stadium bans.

Thursday will see the return in the other semifinal, between Fiorentina and Cremonese. The team from Florence won the first game 2-0.

The final is on May 24 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.