AC Milan defeat Inter 3-0 (4-1) in Coppa Italia semifinals
Luka Jovic nets emphatic brace to lift Rossoneri to finals of competition
Christian Pulisic and AC Milan are off to the Coppa Italia final for the first time in eight years. The Rossoneri defeated arch-rivals Inter 3-0 in leg two of their semifinal on Wednesday, winning and advancing by an aggregate score of 4-1
Goals from striker Luka Jovic in the 36th and 50th minute, and a late dagger from midfielder Tijani Reijnders in the 85th minute secured the victory, with Milan knocking out the Nerazzurri.
Jovic’s first was a beaming header, and the second was him smashing home off a corner kick, following a brief period of pinball in the box. Reijnders found the back of the net late off a counterattack, smacking home to his teammates swarming him, knowing they’d found victory.
Pulisic started the match, logging 78 minutes before he was replaced by midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek. In his time on the pitch, the American winger completed 22 of 28 pass attempts, while creating two attacking chances in the final third. He registered 41 touches on the ball and completed three defensive recoveries, as well.
Fellow U.S. teammate Yunus Musah went as an unused substitute on the bench.
The last time Milan won the Coppa Italia was in the 2002-03 season, while their last appearance in the final was 2018 – a 4-0 loss to Juventus.
The Serbian forward, in his fourth-straight start across all competitions, scored his second and third goals across the stretch to lift Milan to glory on Wednesday. It was a fantastic strikers performance, with him capitalizing in two big moments to shine on the brightest stage.
He’s had an inconsistent 2024-25 season, but this was his moment to shine – and he did exactly that.
Torn apart on all three goals, they were exposed on both set pieces and from open play. It was a catastrophic showing from their back line, from Yann Bisseck to Stefan De Vrij to Alessandro Bastoni. The lone performer for them on the day may have been wingback Federico DiMarco, but overall, just a really poor defensive performance