It has been a fairly miserable 2024 for Juventus. The Old Lady looked set to mount a serious title challenge to Inter in the first half of the season, only losing one game from the 20th of August right through to the 4th of February. Yet, the wheels have come off since then, and you can count the team’s victories on one hand with fingers to spare. Yet, another Coppa Italia Final – Juve’s 22nd – awaits. Questions still hang over the future of coach Max Allegri and securing his 5th Coppa Italia on the 15th of May will surely make the decisions from Juve’s hierarchy more difficult.
Juve will, of course, face Atalanta, a team that has enjoyed a much better second half of the season, particularly in Europe. It’s 61 years since Atalanta’s last Coppa Italia triumph, and this match-up seems just as hard to call as it was when the pair met in the 2021 Final. Bookies seem fairly split on the odds for a victor, and it might even be a match where live betting comes into play as the game ebbs and flows.
Road to the Final
Juventus had a relatively easy route to the Semis, smashing 6 past Salernitana and netting 4 against Frosinone en route to the matchup with Lazio. Winning the first leg 2-0 seemed to set Juve up nicely, but they made hard work of things in the second leg, relying on a late Arkadiusz Milik to avoid extra time and go through 3-2 on aggregate.
Atalanta had a much tougher route to the Semis, facing Sassuolo and Milan in the Last 16 and the Quarter-Finals respectively. I Nerazzurri had to overcome a 1-0 first-leg deficit to Fiorentina but did so comfortably, particularly after a red card for Fiorentina’s Nikola Milenković early in the game.
Previous Meetings
Atalanta and Juventus have met twice this season, with both games ending in a draw, a fact that plays into the consensus that the Coppa Italia Final will be hard to call. In fact, five of the last six meetings between the pair (all comps) have ended in a draw. This will be the second time the two teams have met in a Coppa Italia Final; Juventus won the 2021 clash 2-1.
Key Men
Speculation is swirling around the future of Juventus’ striker Dusan Vlahovic. The Serbian has had a frustrating time of it of late, and there are rumblings that the Old Lady may look to offload him in order to make way for the signing of Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee. Still, Vlahovic can be the man to step up when it counts in the Final.
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There are goals all over this Atalanta team, but the player that makes them tick is clearly Teun Koopmeiners. He, too, is subject to a lot of transfer speculation, particularly from some of the big English clubs. He has become one of Europe’s best midfielders, and Juventus will be wary of a man the club reportedly admires.
Other Factors
Despite horrendous form across the calendar year, Juve have almost certainly booked a spot in next season’s Champions League. As such, they will be able to concentrate on this Final, perhaps even resting players in the leadup. For La Dea, it’s not so easy. Their fight for a Champions League spot will go to the wire, made all the more interesting by Italy’s extra place through UEFA’s co-efficient rankings. Of course, Atalanta also have the Europa League to concentrate on: Where will coach Gian Piero Gasperini’s priorities lie?
Coppa Italia Prediction
As stated, this looks too close to call; bookies have marginally gone for Juventus, but the poor form should not be overlooked, nor should some of the seeming discord among team members, including Vlahovic. Atalanta, however, are spinning several plates at once, and this might end up another draw, perhaps with the lottery of penalties to decide the 2024 Coppa Italia winners.
