Kicks back in Italy
Italian football resumes in silence, Juventus reach final
Turin, June 13: Football finally resumed in Italy in a surreal atmosphere as Juventus drew with 10man AC Milan 0-0 on Friday to reach the Italian Cup final on the away goals rule.
The first leg finished 1-1 in Milan before the coronavirus forced the season to be suspended on March
9.
Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty and Juventus dominated, although quality was clearly lacking in both teams following the lengthy hiatus.
The catchy Juventus anthem which is normally sung enthusiastically by
40,000 fans holding their scarves above their heads was played loudly over the tannoy, but also greeted by silence.
Juventus and Milan walked out separately into the eerie setting and, somewhat ironically, held a minute’s silence for the people who have died from
Covid-19 in Italy. That was followed by applause for healthcare workers.
There was also a show of support for the Black
Lives Matter movement: Milan’s warmup jerseys bore the words and Juventus wore ones with the words ‘’No racism.’’
A penalty was awarded on video review for a handball by Andrea Conti. Cheers from Juventus bench turned to groans as
Ronaldo fired the spot onto the base of the left post.
The Milan bench loudly celebrated but, before they could even retake their seats, they saw forward Ante Rebic sent off for a high challenge on Juventus defender Danilo. Milan had struggled beforehand and, with the dismissal of Rebic, lost its only real goalscorer. Zlatan Ibrahimovic was absent through suspension. After the cup final on Wednesday, Italian league will restart on June 20.