Bianconere dramatically book semi-final spot despite Lazio loss | OneFootball

A dramatic encounter for Juventus Women First Team in the second leg of the Women’s Coppa Italia quarter-finals against Lazio: the Bianconere, who started the game in a strong position following their 3-1 victory in the first leg, progressed to the semi-finals despite losing 2-3 at home (having been 0-3 down at the beginning of the second half).

Let's press rewind and relive the emotions of the match, as well as hearing from the post-match interviews and taking a look at the team sheets.

THE MATCH REPORT

A shuffled starting eleven was chosen by coach Massimiliano Canzi, who gave opportunities to several players who had played less minutes so far this season: but it was a side that struggled in the first half against Lazio, who, on the other hand, were forced to attack following the 3-1 defeat in the first leg. In the first 20 minutes the score remained level, with the Biancoceleste trying to break through, but without finding the necessary space.

Juventus Women, however, failed to hold firm, and in the 21st minute conceded the first goal of the half, through a scruffy but effective right-footed shot by Flaminia Simonetta which Lysianne Proulx was unable to stop. A blow from which the Bianconere were unable to recover as hoped, while Lazio gained in confidence and Alice Benoit's long range effort in the 34th minute hit the crossbar, as the Biancoceleste searched for their second goal.

In the space of a minute the Bianconere threatened down the other end, first through Lindsey Thomas and then with Amalie Vangsgaard, but they were unable to find the back of the net, unlike Lazio's Zsanett Kajan who took advantage of a Bianconere error and diverted the ball home to give her side a 0-2 lead.

The second half started in the worst way possible for Juventus Women: as not even 80 seconds after the restart Lazio found the goal to make it 0-3 with the Simonetti’s second of the game, as she slotted home from close range following Proulx’s parried save.

Juventus Women turned to the bench to introduce reinforcements in an effort to reverse their fortunes, but they were unable to pose a threat: after an hour of play it was 0-3 to Lazio, who with this scoreline would progress to the semi-final of the Women's Coppa Italia.

The Bianconere pushed forward and in the 78th minute a cross from Barbara Bonansea led to Juve winning a corner, which was delivered into a packed penalty area by Hanna Bennison and resulted in a goal to make it 1-3 (with the last touch coming off Federica D'Auria).

Four minutes passed before Paulina Krumbiegel had a great chance, as she was picked out by Thomas' perfect cross, but was unable to generate a clean connection on her effort from close range. The home team continued on the offensive in the closing stages and in the 87th minute Sofia Cantore, who had been causing problems down the right, managed to win a penalty after a naive foul in the area: from the penalty spot Cristiana Girelli was outfoxed by Kerttu Karresmaa, who made a great save, but the quickest to react to the rebound was Emma Kullberg who scored to make it 2-3, booking the Bianconere’s place in the final four.

A strong reaction that sees Juventus Women, despite the defeat, progress to the semi-final of the Women's Coppa Italia.

Gallery | Women's Italian Cup | Juventus - Lazio

MASSIMILIANO CANZI

“We had a first half and an early second half that didn't live up to the name on our shirt: for which we apologise. Then we certainly put our heart and soul into it until the end, but we have to think about the things that didn't work. I had prepared for the match by giving opportunities to those who had played less minutes so far this season: we didn't put in a great performance, on the positive side we qualified for the semi-final. I congratulate Lazio, a team that was able to cause us many problems.

“From my point of view, it was our worst performance of the season, even though we fought without giving up. The choices we made did not pay off: we have to stop for a moment, reflect, think and understand that we are not going far this way. We were too often late to the ball: up to now we have been able to win and play well because we were strong, if we lower our intensity and concentration things change and we cannot afford not to be explosive and decisive. As I always say: substitutions are fundamental, especially since we have five at our disposal. By playing the players who were on the field less, I was counting on their freshness: it didn't work and so, needing to recover from 0-3 down, I brought on those who could help us score goals. We knew we could do it and so I introduced all the firepower I had on the bench.”

**JUVENTUS 2-3 LAZIO

(Aggregate: JUVENTUS 5-4 LAZIO)**

Pozzo La Marmora (Biella), Thursday 30 January, 2025 at 18:00 (CET) Women’s Coppa Italia – Quarter Final – Second Leg

Goals: 21’ Simonetti (L), 45+1’ Kajan (L), 48’ Simonetti (L), 79’ Cantore (J), 88’ Kullberg (J)

Juventus: Proulx, Calligaris (71’ Krumbiegel), Kullberg, Gallo, Thomas, Brighton, Bennison, Bergamaschi (56’ Bonansea), Lehmann (46’ Schatzer), Beccari (56’ Girelli), Vangsgaard (56’ Cantore). Unused Substitutes: Harviiken, Rosucci, Boattin, Peyraud-Magnin, Capelletti, Lenzini. Coach: Massimiliano Canzi.

Lazio: Karresmaa, D’Auria, Connolly, Baltrip-Reyes, Cafferata (77’ Zanoli), Yang (65’ Goldoni), Benoit, Oliviero, Kajan (66’ Le Bihan), Piemonte (85’ Visentin), Simonetti (85’ Castiello). Unused Substitutes: Cetinja, Mancuso, Eriksen, Martinovic, Pizzi, Scaramuzzi. Coach: Gianluca Grassadonia.

Referee: Poli Alberto Assistants: Macchi Francesco, Lo Calio Doriana Isidora Fourth Official: Palmisano Francesco

Bookings: 68’ Benoit (L), 72’ Connolly (L), 90’ Bonansea (J), 90+3 Le Bihan (L)

Note: 87' Girelli missed penalty

Next Match:

Juventus-Napoli Women’s Serie A – Matchday 17 Sunday, 2 February, 2025 at 12:30 (CET) Pozzo La Marmora (Biella)