Substitute Alexis Sanchez scored with the last kick of the match to help Inter Milan win the title of the Italian Super Cup with a 2-1 victory over bitter rival Juventus after extra time on Wednesday.
Sanchez’s goal, helped by an error from the Juventus defense, sparked scenes of wild celebration at San Siro as almost every member of the Inter bench ran onto the field to embrace Sanchez in the far corner.
Lautaro Martinez had converted a penalty in the first half to cancel out American midfielder Weston McKennie’s opener for Juventus in an entertaining game for the first piece of silverware of the season.
Sanchez has now scored three goals in his past five matches but was only brought off the bench in the 75th minute.
“I thought I would play because I was in form; I was hungry to win something,” Sanchez said. “I was like a caged lion; if they let me play, I become a monster.”
Defending champion Juventus has a record nine victories in the Italian Super Cup. But this was the first time since 2012 it qualified for the game as Italian Cup winner rather than league champion after it saw its run of nine successive Serie A titles ended by Inter and former coach Antonio Conte last season.
Inter leads Serie A again, 11 points ahead of Juventus, which had a difficult start to the season.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid struck a fifth Clasico victory in a row on Wednesday to advance to the Spanish Super Cup final with a 3-2 win after extra-time in Saudi Arabia. Real will now face either Atletico Madrid or Athletic Bilbao, who play on Thursday, in Sunday’s final.
Thomas Tuchel said Chelsea reached the League Cup final despite “playing with fire” as Antonio Rudiger’s goal and three VAR decisions helped the Blues seal a 1-0 win at Tottenham on Wednesday.
Rudiger’s first half header ensured Chelsea pressed home the advantage they had earned with a 2-0 win in the semifinal first leg last week. Tottenham were given two penalties by Andre Marriner, only for reviews to overturn both, while Harry Kane saw a goal disallowed for offside. Chelsea, 3-0 aggregate winners, will play Liverpool or Arsenal in the final at Wembley on February 27. Liverpool will host the coronavirus-delayed first leg of their semifinal against the Gunners on Thursday.
Tuchel is the first manager in Chelsea’s history to lead the club to the Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup finals, a feat he achieved just 350 days after his first game in charge in January 2020.
It is Chelsea’s first League Cup final appearance since 2019 as they aim to win the competition for the first time since 2015.
“We need to play better if we’re going to really deserve results like this. We have to meet the standards,” Tuchel said.
Tottenham have not won a major trophy since lifting the League Cup in 2008, and their options for ending that drought this season are dwindling.
