Juventus Reach Coppa Italia Final But Victory May Not Save Max ...

ROME, ITALY - APRIL 23: Arkadiusz Milik of Juventus FC celebrate entry into the Italian Cup final ... [+] during the Coppa Italia Semi-final Second Leg match between SS Lazio and Juventus FC at Stadio Olimpico on April 23, 2024 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Image Photo Agency/Getty Images)

When Arkadiusz Milik entered the pitch at the Studio Olympic with just under 10 minutes left, the Pole no doubt thought he would only get a few touches of the ball. Perhaps he would get a few more if the game went into extra time. Milik had replaced Dusan Vlahovic in the 81st minute of the Coppa Italia semi final second leg and with the aggregate scored tied at 2-2, Milik might’ve gained an extra 30 minutes on the pitch.

Three minutes later and Milik scored with his first touch of the game, anticipating Timothy Weah’s volleyed-drive from the right-hand side better than Lazio defenders and prodding the ball home from two yards out. There would be no extra 30 minutes, Juve went through, and Milik got no more than 15 minutes — injury time included — on the pitch.

Milik had secured Juventus with yet another date with the Coppa Italia final, the club’s last being two years ago. In a tie Juve so very nearly threw away, Milik got the ball, and the team, over the line and kept Max Allegri’s hopes of winning a first trophy in his disappointing second stint as coach alive.

Two goals from Lazio striker Valentin Castellanos had brought the home side back into the tie and the home fans were dreaming of yet another final appearance in their home stadium. Castellanos had taken his chances were Juve had spurned theirs, yet the truth of it was that Juve barely created anything of substance. It was another one of those Juve performances under Allegri where they huffed and puffed but created precious little.

The match and the tie seemed to be heading in one direction until Milik’s timely intervention in the 84th minute, and Igor Tudor’s side can feel hard done by considering their performance on the evening. However they paid for their sloppy display in Turin in the first leg. Yet at times Lazio played some excellent football and Tudor is already stamping his mark on the team and Castellanos, in particular, showed why he will likely have a bigger role to play under him next season than under predecessor Maurizio Sarri.

It’s Allegri’s second cup final in three seasons, and if this is to be his curtain call as Juve boss, he’ll likely want to go out with a bang. The Tuscan’s second stint in Turin hasn’t come close to matching the all-conquering first. Of course, much of this hasn’t been his fault alone, the quality of players he inherited this time around is nothing close to what he received in the summer of 2014 when he replaced Antonio Conte, but some of his decisions this season have been head-scratching. Moreover, the constant strategy of giving the opponent the ball and hoping to hit on the counter, a provincial mindset, has long since grated on fans.

But the same is also true that Allegri hasn’t much to work with. So many of the current Juve starting XI simply aren't good enough to play for the club, and a major overhaul is needed in the summer if Juve are going to contest for trophies again. There is the feeling that Allegri has taken the club as far as he can and a departure seems almost inevitable at the conclusion of the campaign, with or without silverware.

Thiago Motta, performing minor miracles at Bologna this season, is continually linked with the job for next. Even if a job the magnitude of Juve may be too early in his coaching career, it’s clear that Juve need to move on from Allegri. In the club’s recent history, Allegri became only the third coach to be hired twice, and just like Giovanni Trapattoni’s second spell from 1991 to 1994, it just didn’t work. Only Marcello Lippi’s second spell in the early 2000s matched the success of his first spell, and Allegri's reputation has taken somewhat of a hit in the past three years.

It also hasn't helped that he’s the highest-paid manager in Serie A now, and the question could rightfully be argued whether Juve are getting bang for their buck. That being said, Allegri has delivered another cup final appearance and, whether they meet Fiorentina or Atalanta in the final, Juve will be expected to win the competition for the 15th time on May 15th.

Should they not, then it would perfectly encapsulate his three years back at the club: moments of brilliance eclipsed by prolonged spells of mediocrity.