ROME: Bologna manager Vincenzo Italiano said his side earned the Coppa Italia trophy by learning from their recent defeat to AC Milan and delivering a performance worthy of the occasion.

Dan Ndoye’s second-half strike earned Bologna a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Milan 1-0 at Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday to lift the Coppa Italia for the first time in 51 years and third time overall.

The win came after Italiano’s side suffered a 3-1 defeat at Milan in Serie A on Friday.

“After some disappointments, I think we deserved this, especially as we played a great game tonight. It was an incredible performance, we knew once again what Milan would do in the second half, so we responded,” Italiano told Sport Mediaset.

The German-born 47-year-old could finally celebrate his first trophy as a manager after reaching both the UEFA Conference League final twice and the Coppa Italia final with his previous club Fiorentina.

“Those were three very big disappointments. I didn’t honestly think I could get straight back out there and win it, but I did. I dedicate it to my players, who are extraordinary,” Italiano said.

“We had a few initial difficulties, but then have been going from strength to strength, both as individuals and a unit. Now plea­se let me go and celebrate, because this is incredible, Italiano added.

Bologna’s goalscorer, Ndoye, praised his side for the way they defended.

“Today is incredible, seeing all our fans in this stadium. It was a tough game, but we won for the city, for the fans, it’s incredible and we are so happy,” the Switzerland international said. “We scored at the right time, then defended like a real team, we held tough.”

Ndoye got the breakthrough eight minutes after the restart when Milan defender Theo Hernandez’s well-timed tackle on Riccardo Orsolini sent the ball rolling to an unmarked Ndoye, who calmly slotted it home from close range.

Both teams were desperate to salvage what had been disappointing seasons, with Bologna sitting in seventh place in Serie A and Milan trailing just behind in eighth, with only two matches left to play.

After a fast-paced start to the first half, where both sides carved out dangerous chances, the teams went into the break goalless after some sharp saves at either end.

Milan keeper Mike Maignan was called into action within the first few minutes, making a reflex save from a flicked header by Juan Miranda following a free kick.

Minutes later, Bologna keeper Lukasz Skorupski pulled off an impressive double stop, saving from an unfortunate deflection from teammate Sam Beukema off a cross, then stopping an effort from Milan’s Luka Jovic on the rebound.

After Bologna got the breakthrough, Sergio Conceicao’s Mi­lan laboured to find any urge­ncy as their attacks fizzled out long before threatening an equaliser.

Conceicao said he wasn’t thinking about his future with Milan, acknowledging the struggles of the season and the missed opportunities, yet emphasising the need to look forward with dignity.

Portuguese Conceicao signed a contract with Milan until the end of next season but there has been speculation that he might leave in the summer.

He began at Milan by winning the Italian Super Cup after replacing sacked Paulo Fonseca but since then he has presided over a difficult campaign characterised by poor results and fan protests against the club’s American owners RedBird.

“Right now I have a lot of thoughts about the game and what I did, what went right and what went wrong. I didn’t get into football a couple of days ago,” Conceicao told reporters.

“Right now in my head I’m trying to work out what more we could have done tonight. We’ll finish the season with dignity and we’ll talk about my future later.”

Milan are three points behind AS Roma who sit in Serie A’s Conference League position and host the seven-time European champions on Sunday.

They then finish their season against relegated Monza, which could be a key match with qualification for European competition through the cup no longer a possibility.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2025