For Juventus, the path to the Coppa Italia final seemed rather simple.
They rolled in their round of 16 tie before the new year, then got a little bit of help in an all-Tuscan tie to see a relegation battler get through to the other half of their quarterfinal tie. It was all set up for some smooth sailing into the semifinals where Thiago Motta’s former club awaited and a potential second straight final right around the corner.
But the only time Motta will be seeing Bologna again this season will be in league play.
The aftershocks of Juve’s Coppa Italia exit are likely still being felt. As we wait to see what Juventus do in their first league fixture since their Coppa exit, the fact that Motta’s squad played so poorly that a second-choice Empoli lineup ousted them from the competition they won last season is still hard to believe. Juventus weren’t good last Wednesday night, but a team full of regular starters still weren’t able to get past an Empoli side that fielded plenty of reserves and a handful of primavera players.
It was bad. It was very, very bad.
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