On Wednesday, a young Juventus side shrugged aside Spal in a dominating 4-0 victory in the Coppa Italia quarter finals.
Their reward? Two back to back midweek fixtures against Inter in the semi finals of the competition.
The Bianconeri have barely been afforded a day off during the current campaign, having to play two matches per week for almost the entire season.
Whilst Inter have been knocked out of European competitions, and Milan won’t have to play any more domestic cup matches, Andrea Pirlo’s men have been competing on all fronts – even in the Italian Super Cup.
Although this exhausting schedule could cost the team on a physical level, a golden opportunity has presented itself to the Old Lady.
As we mentioned in a previous opinion article, winning the Coppa Italia won’t save the club’s season if they fail to win the Scudetto or go far in the Champions League.
However, the chance to redeem the side’s reputation and confidence shouldn’t be wasted.
Less than two weeks ago, Juventus were flattened by Inter during their encounter in the round 18 of Serie A.
Whilst defeats are a natural occurrence throughout a long season, the way that the Nerazzurri managed to force their will upon the Italian champions was surely a worrying sign for the Bianconeri faithful.
So instead of having to wait until the end of the season to try their luck once again against Antonio Conte’s men, Juve can rebuild their self-esteem as soon as next week, when the two sides meet in the first leg of the Semi finals, before locking horns once again in the second leg a week later.
Pirlo’s first managerial defeat came at the hands of Barcelona. Nonetheless the young tactician managed to avenge it in a thrilling 3-0 win at the Camp Nou which sealed the top spot for the Old Lady in the Champions League group.
So will Juve be able to earn their vengeance throughout the upcoming 180 minutes against their arch rivals?
Whatever the result will be, its consequences will have a large effect on the club’s campaign, which definitely exceeds the domestic cup competition.
