MILAN: Defending champions Inter Milan reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Atalanta thanks to a second-half goal from Matteo Darmian.

Simone Inzaghi’s side will now face the winners of Thursday’s match between troubled Juventus and Lazio for a place in the final.

Inter beat Juve in last season’s final to claim their eighth Italian Cup.

The other side of the draw will be decided on Wednesday when Fiorentina host Torino and Roma welcome Cremonese to the Italian capital.

Inter were the better team in the first half but could not find the net, with Hakan Calhanoglu coming closest with a shot at the post four minutes before stoppage time.

It took 57 minutes before Inter broke the deadlock when Darmian got the ball at the edge of the box and, unmarked, placed it into the bottom corner.

Atalanta tried to get an equaliser but the Inter defence contained them until the end of the match.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2023