Cristiano Ronaldo added another trophy to his glittering career as Juventus secured a thrilling 2-1 victory over Atalanta in the Coppa Italia final. In a cup final which ebbed and flowed, Juventus showed their experience and class to secure the trophy for the 14th time in their illustrious history.
Atalanta started the game brightly and created plenty of chances. However, it was Juventus who took the lead thanks to Dejan Kulusevski's wonderful curling strike in the 31st minute.
Atalanta were not behind for long and equalized just 10 minutes later through Ruslan Malinovskiy's stunning strike. The teams went into the break level at 1-1.
After the break, Juventus looked like a completely different side as the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Juan Cuadrado, Federico Chiesa and Kulusevski all got into dangerous positions regularly.
The second half pressure from Juventus was finally rewarded as Chiesa scored in the 72nd minute to give the Old Lady a 2-1 lead. Atalanta huffed and puffed but were unable to create any clear openings as Matthijs de Ligt and Chiellini held firm.
The Coppa Italia triumph means Cristiano Ronaldo is the only person in football history to win the domestic cup and league title in 3 of Europe's top 5 leagues. It was also Andrea Pirlo's second trophy as Juventus manager.
Pirlo's future has been subject to intense speculation over the last few weeks, however, the Italian reiterated his interest in continuing as Juventus manager next season. Speaking to RAI Sport after the match, Pirlo said:
“For my first season, I have learned a great deal and then found these satisfactions that are very gratifying,
“Of course I would confirm myself in this role. I’ve loved football since I was a child and will continue to love it. The club will decide, but I love coaching, I love this club, and we’ll see what is decided. I would like to continue.
“The lads have always been behind me 100 per cent and that’s very satisfying for a coach, no matter what the gossip says in the papers.”
Cristiano Ronaldo has also been heavily linked with an exit from Juventus in the upcoming transfer window. With one final match left in Serie A, the Bianconeri are in 5th position and one point behind Napoli and AC Milan in the race for the Champions League spot.
Cristiano Ronaldo will definitely not want to play in the Europa League next season and a lot could rest on the results of the final matchday in Serie A. Without further ado, let us take a look at the: