Vincenzo Italiano leads Bologna to Coppa Italia final against Milan

The first key word is intensity: matches are not won in the final minutes, as happened on Thursday night with Empoli, if the technical, athletic and mental ferocity that only a 'top' coach can instill does not accompany you until the end. The second is empathy: only those who leave a lasting mark can enter the minds of their players and the heart of an entire city. We mention in chronological order Maifredi, Ulivieri and Mazzone, omitting the deserving Guidolin and Motta only because with the city, at different times and in different ways (and in the case of Guidolin then mending the rift), the two collided. And then there is Mihajlovic, who entered the hearts of the Bolognese with explosive force and for obvious reasons will never leave.

The point is that Vincenzo Italiano is reaching technical milestones that his illustrious predecessors had only grazed or partially touched. Thiago was fourth at this time a year ago, but this Bologna to a fourth place in the championship to defend tooth and nail has just added the pearl of winning a final of the Italian Cup, the challenge of May 14th at the Olimpico with Milan, which had been missing in these latitudes for fifty-one years. Mazzone, for example, twenty-six years ago led Gazzoni's Bologna to a semi-final of the UEFA Cup, but failed to reach the final of the Coppa Italia.

For Italiano, however, the one against Milan will be the fourth final he has won in the last two years. And never mind that having lost the previous three at the helm of Fiorentina since Thursday night is probably keeping him awake at night. Let's put ourselves in his shoes: after being defeated in the final act in 2023 in the Coppa Italia with Inter (1-2 at the Olimpico) and in 2023 and 2024 in the Conference League at the hands of West Ham (1-2 in Prague) and Olympiacos (0-1 in Athens), respectively, the happiness that was pouring out of every pore on Thursday night on the pitch at the Dall'Ara and in the press room is a feeling that from now until May 14 will inevitably mix with the fear, which would have the taste of a curse, of once again leaving a final empty-handed. An event that cannot be ruled out a priori when you challenge a crazy, inconsistent but potentially very strong Milan.

The Man from Ribera, however, stops at nothing. A year ago, he was not stopped by the awareness of the risk of inheriting an uncomfortable bench, and today he certainly cannot be stopped by the idea of ​​facing a Milan in a one-off match that two months ago he had already defeated (2-1) in the recovery of the Dall'Ara. Since that 8th July 2024, the day of the meeting in Casteldebole, 292 days have passed. And there is probably not one who has not contributed to shaping a season that today it would be unfair to label as an Italian Miracle. In its technical path, this Bologna has nothing miraculous, relying on the solidity of Saputo and the skills of Fenucci, Sartori and Di Vaio, the latter having just renewed his contract (until 2027).

Renewal is a key word for Italiano too, an inevitable step for a coach whose contract expires in a year and everyone's eyes, including Milan, are on him. Fenucci and Di Vaio have thrown him the bait publicly and Vincenzo asks for nothing better than to 'take the bait'. Here he lacks nothing: now also the possibility of breaking the finals taboo.