Bologna end 51-year wait for glory with Italian Cup triumph
Bologna players lift the trophy in celebration after their Italian Cup final victory over AC Milan at Rome's Olympic stadium. (AP pic)
ROME : Bologna ended a 51-year wait for a major trophy on Wednesday after winning the Italian Cup with a 1-0 victory over AC Milan, who slumped to yet another painful defeat in a horror season.
Dan Ndoye scored the goal in the 53rd minute which gave Bologna a historic victory, their first honour since last winning the cup in 1974.
Bologna hadn't even been in a major tournament final since last winning the Italian Cup – the second of their two domestic cup triumphs.
But coach Vincenzo Italiano has a done a brilliant job since arriving to replace Thiago Motta at Bologna, who have won the Italian championship seven times but last did so in 1964.
'It was a tough match but we won it for us, for the city and for the fans,' said Ndoye to broadcaster Mediaset.
'We did everything right, we scored at the right moment and the worked like a true team.'
Wednesday's victory was also Italiano's first major honour as a coach as he lost three finals with his previous club Fiorentina, including the 2023 Italian Cup final.
Italiano was held aloft by his jubilant players as Bologna fans danced and cried in the Stadio Olimpico stands after seeing what many thought they'd never see.
'We deserved this, especially as we played great tonight. It was a fantastic performance,' said Italiano.
'We've crowned an incredible year with the cup, which is what our fans deserved.'
Milan were crowned European champions the same season they last won the cup in 2003, a different time for a club once owned by deceased former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Rivals Inter Milan are in the Champions League final and trying to retain their Serie A title while Milan are in battle to qualify for Europe after missing out on the cup.
Sergio Conceicao's team sit eighth in Serie A, three points behind Roma who sit in the Conference League spot and host Milan on Sunday.
Just before kick-off Bologna supporters unfurled a huge display honouring the players who won the cup in 1974 and provided colourful and enthusiastic backing for their team throughout a scrappy contest.
Santiago Castro had the first chance of the game for Bologna in the eighth minute but failed to get enough on a vicious inswinging cross to divert it past Mike Maignan, who was already committed in the Milan goal.
Bologna survived a huge scare moments later when Alex Jimenez got down the right and drilled in a low cross which Sam Beukema diverted straight at his goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski, who was then lucky enough for Luka Jovic to smash the rebound right down his throat.
The match became a more tense affair after that, and it wasn't until Ndoye's winner that either team had another opportunity, the Switzerland attacker shimmying and lashing home after Riccardo Orsolini was tackled in the penalty area by Theo Hernandez.
Milan have been comeback specialists this season, including when beating Bologna 3-1 in the league last weekend.
But they only mustered up one other chance of note in the 71st minute, when substitute Santiago Gimenez's dreadful first touch effectively passed Hernandez's low cross to Skorupski.
Bologna successfully, if somewhat awkwardly, hacked away Milan's limp attempts to attack, and collapsed to the ground in exhaustion once referee Maurizio Mariani blew the final whistle.
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