Four-time defending champions Juventus on Wednesday crashed out of the Coppa Italia with a 3-0 quarter-final defeat by Atalanta BC, while AS Roma suffered a humiliating 7-1 thrashing at the hands of ACF Fiorentina.
Juventus had been bidding for a fifth consecutive Serie A and Coppa Italia double this season.
However, a Duvan Zapata brace after rightback Timothy Castagne’s opener put the side from Bergamo, Italy, through to a semi-final meeting with Fiorentina.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Juventus earlier this month won their first trophy of the season in the Supercoppa Italiana.
However, they on Wednesday suffered their first defeat in a domestic competition this season, as they ride high and unbeaten in Serie A.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side had come from behind against SS Lazio in league action over the weekend, with Ronaldo snatching a 2-1 win in Rome.
The Portuguese superstar could not find a way through for a first Coppa Italia goal, with Juventus also hit by defender Giorgio Chiellini going off injured in the first half hour.
Castagne opened the scoring after 37 minutes, with Zapata grabbing another two minutes later, before adding a third four minutes from time for his 17th goal in 10 matches.
The Colombian ace also scored a double in a 2-2 draw when the sides last met in Serie A on Dec. 26 last year.
“It’s only human not to always be top. Now let’s put this behind us and think about the next Serie A match against Parma,” said Allegri, who was banished from the touchline for dissent. “I don’t know how many games the lads have won. In Rome we had a terrible first half, but we fought back. This evening everything went wrong.”
“It would have been crazy to think we could win every match. It hurts to go out, because we really wanted this trophy,” he said.
“Even the most optimistic fan could not have predicted this victory,” said coach Gian Piero Gasperini as the side from Bergamo target their second Coppa Italia title since 1963.
Earlier in Tuscany, Federico Chiesa scored a hat-trick as Fiorentina crushed a “shameful” Roma side.
Chiesa scored two early on, adding a third in the second half past overwhelmed Roma goalkeeper Robin Olsen, with Giovanni Simeone bagging a brace in the final 10 minutes.
Colombian Luis Muriel and Marco Benassi also found the net against a Roma side who were reeling after throwing away a three-goal lead to draw 3-3 with Atalanta over the weekend in Serie A.
“I’m bitter, but I won’t quit,” Roma coach Eusebio di Francesco said. “I’m disappointed in the team, there are no excuses. I struggle to explain what happened, as it was a game we got wrong in every conceivable way. It was shameful.”
Di Francesco’s side had fought back after a difficult start to the season with four straight wins in Serie A and the Coppa Italia, and are now fifth in the league.
“The frustrating thing is it’s so inexplicable,” the Roma boss said. “Every time we think we are healed, we discover the illness is still there.”
Chiesa got the first goal after seven minutes a receiving a cross from leftback Cristiano Biraghi.
A Bryan Cristante header rattled the post before 21-year-old Chiesa lobbed in his second over Olsen just after 15 minutes.
Aleksandar Kolarov pulled one back for Roma after a half-hour, but Fiorentina were soon two goals ahead again through Muriel.
The Colombian set up Benassi after 66 minutes, with Simeone coming off the bench to pile more misery on Roma, who finished the game with 10 men after second-half substitute Edin Dzeko was sent off for a second yellow card.
“It’s the hardest day of my career,” Roma sporting director Monchi said. “I’ve never experienced anything quite like that and we can only apologize to all the Roma fans. I can only repeat sorry, sorry, sorry.”
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
Taiwan last night defeated Cuba 2-0 in their World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12 Group B game at the Taipei Dome and finished the group second. At the Taipei Tianmu Baseball Stadium, South Korea yesterday defeated Australia 5-2, while Japan last night won 11-3 against the Dominican Republic. On Sunday, Taiwan scored two three-run homers in an 11-3 blowout win over Australia at the Taipei Dome to advance to the Super Round. Fresh off a defeat at the hands of defending Premier12 champions and Group B winners Japan the previous day, Taiwan’s offense came out slugging against Australia from the
TWO-NIL LOSS: Taiwan’s best chance to score came at the top of the fifth with the bases loaded and one out, but Venezuela’s Liarvis Breto got out of the jam Taiwan yesterday suffered a shutout 2-0 loss to Venezuela in the opening game of the WBSC Premier12 Super Round at the Tokyo Dome. Taiwan had seven hits, one more than Venezuela’s six, but catcher Carlos Perez’s two-run homer to left field in the bottom of the fourth inning delivered the only runs scored by both teams and secured victory for Venezuela. Taiwan’s best chance came at the top of the fifth inning with the bases loaded and only one out. However, Venezuela reliever Liarvis Breto struck out Chen Chen-wei before reliever Pedro Garcia finished the inning by allowing an infield flyball by Lin
As sporting celebrations go, it does not quite have the charm of Roger Milla’s hip-wiggling shimmy with a corner flag at the 1990 World Cup or the imperious swagger of Usain Bolt’s iconic lightning pose. However, a dance move inspired by US president-elect Donald Trump’s stilted on-stage boogieing has rapidly become the celebration of choice across the US sporting world. From the blood-soaked UFC to the hard-hitting NFL and the reliably decorous world of the LPGA Tour, athletes across North America have succumbed to the viral Trump dance craze in the past week. On Monday, US soccer star Christian Pulisic became the latest
RSS