Juventus won the Coppa Italia for the 15th time, defeating Atalanta 1-0 in the Stadio Olimpico.
Dusan Vlahovic scored the crucial goal in the fourth minute, rushing through on goal and smashing the ball home.
The Serbia international felt he had increased Juventus’ lead in the second half, but replays revealed he had strayed into an offside position before heading past Marco Carnesecchi.
Ademola Lookman of Atalanta came close to scoring a late equaliser, but his powerful drive bounced off the wall.
Juventus eventually held firm to claim a close victory and their first major trophy since winning the Coppa Italia in 2020-21.
Meanwhile, Atalanta’s 61-year search for the Coppa Italia title will continue, but they will have the opportunity to win silverware in next week’s Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen.
Juventus took early lead with Vlahovic’s goal
There has been much conjecture that Juventus may part ways with Massimiliano Allegri at the conclusion of the season, but all that chatter has been put on wait until Wednesday’s Coppa Italia final against Atalanta.
The Juventus manager watched his squad get off to a great start, with Vlahovic breaking the deadlock inside the first five minutes.
The Serbian striker received Andrea Cambiaso’s through pass and fired past Carnesecchi for his 18th goal of the season.
Vlahovic’s early effort was Atalanta’s sole shot on goal in the first half, as the team struggled to break through a tight Juventus defense.
Gasperini walked to his bench at halftime, unhappy with his team’s performance, and introduced Mali striker El Bilal Toure.
Gasperini’s team started the second session well, with Lookman diverting a shot just wide of Mattia Perin’s goal.
Atalanta fail to find the elusive equaliser
As the game neared its last 20 minutes, replacement Aleksei Miranchuk squandered a wonderful chance by putting the ball harmlessly over the bar after meeting a low cross from the left wing.
Vlahovic felt he had scored the crucial second goal shortly after Miranchuk crossed, but it was ruled an offside penalty.
With the deficit still narrow, Atalanta came agonisingly close to equalising when Lookman hammered a fierce shot against the upright.
After being saved by the woodwork, Juventus were left furious as Fabio Miretti unleashed a blistering effort against Carnesecchi’s crossbar.
As it turned out, Juventus didn’t need a second goal as Perin made a great save to deny Ederson in stoppage time, ensuring Vlahovic’s early score was enough to secure their sixth Coppa Italia in nine years.
Meanwhile, Gasperini is left to ruminate on his third Coppa Italia defeat as Atalanta manager, with the seasoned manager still looking for his first major trophy.
Gasperini will be hoping to reverse that statistic when his side faces Bayer Leverkusen in next week’s Europa League final in Dublin.
