(Football news) A spot in the cup quarterfinals is at risk as two teams at different ends of the league rankings square off; the winner will either be Sassuolo or Atalanta BC in the final eight. Milan will look to go one step closer to a sixth national cup this week when they play the second of two back-to-back games on home turf. Milan has missed the first two rounds of the Coppa Italia.
With a match against Sassuolo at San Siro on Saturday night to close out 2023, the Rossoneri were hoping to bounce back from their most recent Scudetto campaign defeat, a humiliating 2-2 draw at Salernitana right before Christmas.
With a 12-point gap to their bitter rivals Inter Milan, Stefano Pioli’s team needed to win against a team they hadn’t defeated in Milan since 2019. A tenacious 1-0 victory was enough to cut the deficit to just one goal.
The game was eventually decided by a goal from Christian Pulisic in the second half. Milan had previously gone four games without a league win, but they have now won four of their last six Serie A games.
As last season’s Champions League semi-finalists attempt to make a run to the Coppa Italia final, which will take place in Rome in the spring of next year, the focus now shifts to the knockout competition.
Given their opponents’ lack of experience in Italy’s premier cup competition, Milan will at least be confident of securing a spot in this year’s quarterfinals. Milan’s drought in the Coppa dates back to 2003, when contemporary greats Andriy Shevchenko and Rivaldo were among the scorers in their final win over Roma.
After advancing through two earlier rounds this season, Cagliari will now face a challenging test in the second city. They have never hoisted the cup before, coming closest to victory in 1969 when they were defeated in the final.
The Rossoblu 2023–24 campaign got off to a thrilling start against Palermo in extra time. Following a period of time spent adjusting to life back in Serie A, they overcame Udinese.
