Italian Cup: Juventus squeeze into Coppa Italia final

TURIN: Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty as Juventus were held to a 0-0 draw by 10-man AC Milan on Friday at Allianz Stadium in Turin but the Turin side still squeezed into the Coppa Italia final as the season restarted following a three-month stoppage for the novel coronavirus.

Juve qualified for Wednesday's final on away goals following their 1-1 draw in the first leg of the semi-final, played on February 13, and face Napoli or Inter Milan.

Juventus is the first Coppa Italia finalist following their goalless stalemate against AC Milan in the second leg of the semi-finals at Allianz Stadium in Turin.

The match, played in an empty stadium on Friday, postponed from its original date of March 4, was the first to be played since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy.

The two sides tied 1-1 after the first leg at San Siro, eight days before the pandemic broke out in the Lombardy region whose capital is Milan.

Napoli host Inter at San Paolo Stadium in Naples on June 13 after beating the Nerazzurri 1-0 in the first leg.

The final is scheduled for June 17 at Rome's Stadio Olimpico.

This year's Italy Cup will be the first football trophy in the world to be awarded since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to RAI public broadcaster, which aired the match live.

Also on Friday, AC Milan said it has raised 650,000 euros to help fight coronavirus. "The fundraising program has also involved the Rossoneri family across the globe," Juve said on its website.

Chinese Rossoneri fans in Sichuan and Guangzhou have donated 12,000 masks to Milan's Policlinico Hospital, the team said. IANS 

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