Ronaldo on target as Juventus beat Roma in Coppa Italia quarterfinal

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:17 am

Cristiano Ronaldo scored the opening goal as a rampant Juventus beat Roma 3-1 in their Coppa Italia quarterfinal clash at the Allianz Stadium on Wednesday.

Juve, who won the competition four years in a row before being knocked out by Atalanta at this stage last season, appeared determined to claim the trophy back as manager Maurizio Sarri fielded a strong line-up.

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And, while Roma started well, they were behind on 26 minutes as Ronaldo raced past right-back Alessandro Florenzi before rifling the ball across goalkeeper Pau Lopez and into the bottom corner.

Cristiano Ronaldo's opener set Juventus on their way against Roma.
Mattia Ozbot/Soccrates/Getty Images

Juve doubled their lead on 38 minutes as Rodrigo Bentancur squeezed the ball home before Leonardo Bonucci headed home a third at back post in first-half stoppage time.

Roma came out with more determination in the second half and threatened to make a game of it when Cengiz Under's stunning effort hit the bar and went in via a deflection off Gianluigi Buffon on 50 minutes.

But Juventus held on for the victory as Buffon pulled off two impressive saves to make it through to the semifinals as they look to extend their record of 13 trophy wins.