A Coppa Italia fixture against Genoa before the Derby d’Italia, Juve advance into the quarterfinals with a tight 3-2 score after extra time. With goals from Kulusevski, Morata, and U23 player Rafia, the Bianconeri must now rest and get prepared for the big match this weekend.

4-4-2

#77- Buffon
#28- Demiral
#37- Dragusin
#3- Chiellini
#33- Bernardeschi
#52- Wesley
#5- Arthur
#30- Bentancur
#39- Portanova
#44- Kulusevski
#9- Morata

The Bianconeri get an amazing start going into the match, when Chiellini’s perfectly-placed assist finds Kulusevski and the latter finds the back of the net in just under 2 minutes. This is the first match that the captain has started since his return from injury.

Juve continue to dominate the match and at the 23rd minute, scores a second goal. This time the goalscorer is Morata, who takes advantage of Kulusevski’s beautiful one-touch pass.

It seemed that Juve were going to cruise past their opponents to the quarterfinals, but a goal from Genoa just five minutes later put some uncertainty in the air. The Bianconeri continue to keep possession and have chances but are unable to turn that into a third goal. The first half ends 2-1.

Pirlo makes some changes in the second half, subbing on Rabiot, Bonucci, and Danilo for Bentancur, Chiellini, and Demiral. However, as Juve continue to waste chances in a match that seemed to be decided early on, Genoa punish the home side. At the 74th minute, the away side levels, and now pose a real threat to the Bianconeri.

U23 player Rafia is subbed on for Portanova three minutes later, but the scoreline remains the same until the end of the regular 90 minutes. The two sides must continue into extra-time. Ronaldo, who Pirlo was probably hoping to rest for the entirety of the match, was subbed on in the final minutes of regular game time.

Extra-time begins and the tired Bianconeri must find a way to score another if they were to advance into the Coppa Italia quarterfinals. Juve come extremely close to finding a goal in the 96th minute, but their attempt was blocked by the opponent’s goalkeeper. Eventually though, the Bianconeri find a goal through Brazilian youngster Rafia.

Both sides had multiple other chances in the remainder of extra-time. Notably, Genoa came close to yet another equalizer, but Arthur was able to act as an impromptu goalkeeper and head the ball out before it entered the goal. The match ends 3-2 and Juve advance!

Pirlo:
“We made life difficult for ourselves. We started very well and could’ve managed the game better. A lapse in concentration for their first goal meant we had to work much harder. It’s a shame because we could’ve managed our efforts better, but there were lots of players out there getting their first taste of this level and you can expect the odd mistake.”

Chiellini:
“I felt like a youngster making his debut… Playing for 60 minutes gives me confidence and I hope I can help the team depending on the coach’s choices… As for the Inter match, it’s important, but not decisive. We’re not even halfway through the season, but it’s still an important game that could go either way and we want to do well.”

This was another unpretty win. Considering Sunday’s crucial match against Inter and the Coppa Italia still being in its early stages, we were able to see some unfamiliar names on the pitch. For example, three players from the U23 team- Portanova, Dragusin, and Wesley were in the starting XI. Rafia was subbed on later and was able to score the decisive goal in extra-time. It was nice to see some of the younger players get a lot more playtime, but it’s unfortunate that Juve weren’t able to finish the match in the 90 minutes. We got off to a wonderful start- goals from Kulusevski and Morata saw us 2 goals ahead at just 23 minutes. However, like the match against Sassuolo, the team lacked mentality and wasted many chances. Ultimately, Genoa were better at using the chances they got, and Juve were in turn punished with the players having to run on the pitch for an extra thirty minutes. The forwards were at times too selfish, deciding to go for the goal themselves rather than passing to a wide-open teammate on the other side of the field. Defense was lacking, as we had multiple inexperienced players who sometimes were unable to read the field as well. With a tough match ahead, hopefully our players (especially those who played the entire 120 minutes) will get a few days of good recovery and rest and come back with a strong performance like they had against AC Milan. Fino alla fine.