Coppa Italia 2024, today’s matches: Sassuolo wins in Lecce, Cagliari beats Cremonese – Football

Sassuolo, Cagliari and Empoli earn the pass to the eighth finals Italian Cup. Il Sassuolo by Fabio Grosso, a club that plays in Serie B, wins 2-0 at Lecce and gives himself the challenge at the Meazza Milan. The match at Via del Mare was decided by goals from Muharemovic and D’Andrea. First smile of the season for the Cagliariwho thanks to a strike from Lapadula beat Cremonese 1-0: next opponent Juve. Continues to amaze the Empoli of D’Aversa, who wins 2-1 on the pitch of Torino Serie A leaders: Ekong and Haas scored for the Tuscans, Adams for the Granata. In the round of 16, the derby with Fiorentina.

Lecce-Sassuolo 0-2

Sassuolo started off with their foot on the accelerator and after 7′ they carved out their first chance to score with a header from Muharemovic that ended just wide. A very similar move was repeated by the Neroverdi in the 13th minute and this time it led to the goal of the same Muharemovic: the former Juventus player took advantage of a precise cross from Doig and headed it past Fruchtl. Lecce tried to react by relying on their best players, but they struggled to break through the wall erected by Grosso’s team who wasted the chance to double their lead at the end of the first half with Russo. In the second half Gotti tried to change gear with the substitutions but was unable to do so. The home team went out on a limb in search of an equaliser and left themselves open to counterattacks from Sassuolo, who twice came close to making it 2-0 with the new arrival Moro. The doubling came in the 79th minute with a great left-footed shot from Luca D’Andrea.

Cagliari-Cremonese 1-0

Cagliari deserved to advance to the next round, dominating in the second half, but too wasteful in the final meters: the result could have been much more severe for Cremonese. After an initial quarter of an hour of running-in, Cagliari took control of the match and began to grind out the game, especially exploiting the side lanes. Among the ranks of the Sardinians, the most lively were Augello, Felici and Azzi. The latter, in the 19th minute, sensationally missed the open-net goal: after Saro’s deflection, the ball unfortunately ricocheted off the former Modena player and ended up just wide. In the 26th minute it was Lapadula’s turn, who scared the Grigiorossi, coordinating himself on the fly and hitting the post. In the second half Cremonese started better, taking advantage of a more unstable Cagliari in defense. Milanese and De Luca relied on shots from outside without managing to worry Sherri. After a few minutes of suffering, Cagliari reinvigorate and hit Cremonese, thanks to a lethal counterattack. In the 60th minute, from the left, Augello crosses for Lapadula, who is good at slipping between Moretti and Lochoshvili and deflecting the ball into the net from a few steps away. Three minutes later, Saro outdoes himself, reading Lapadula’s attempted lob and denying him a brace: the visitors’ goalkeeper also saves Piccoli’s subsequent right-footed shot from outside the area. Possession is now firmly in Cagliari’s hands, who flirt with 2-0 several times, but fail to deliver the final blow to their opponents. In the 78th minute, Luvumbo misses a goal all alone in front of Saro: Viola’s shot from the edge follows shortly after, but it goes just wide.

Turin-Empoli 1-2

Empoli started off strong, creating their first chance to score after just 4′ with a nice pass from Ekong to Konate, who was blocked by Gineitis. The boys led by Anoli reacted a few minutes later with Adams, who was however stopped by a rough tackle from De Sciglio. In the 25th minute, Gineitis shot from distance, but it didn’t hit the target. Empoli attacked with greater determination and took the lead in the 30th minute with Emmanuel Ekong who, assisted by Haas, scores the winning header. Two minutes later there is a dubious contact in the Azzurri penalty area between Seghetti and Adams, but the referee lets it go. In the second half Vanoli tries to shake up his team with the changes. In the 64th minute the new arrival Zapata immediately stands out by going very close to equalising, but is imprecise and misses the target. The time is ripe for Torino to score, and in the 74th minute they manage to equalise thanks to Che Adams: the Scotsman anticipates Cacace and finds the decisive header on Ricci’s cross. When the match seems to be heading towards penalties, Nicolas Haas finds the winning blow in the melee that gives the Tuscans a 2-1 victory.