Juventus put one foot in the final of the Italian Cup

Paulo Dybala's double from the penalty spot and a goal from Gonzalo Higuain gave Juventus a 3-1 win over Napoli in the first leg of their Italian Cup semi-final.

Dybala scored twice to help Juventus defeat Napoli. Photo: AFP

In the match that took place early this morning (March 1, Vietnam time), Juventus coach Max Allegri fielded a strong lineup to take on Napoli. Except for goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon who was rested, other stars such as Dybala, Higuain, Mario Mandzukic... were all in the starting lineup.

On Napoli's side, striker Arkadiusz Milik had his first match since being injured last October. Despite having to play at Juventus Arena, coach Maurizio Sarri's players did not hesitate to play tit for tat with the "Old Lady" of Turin.

The stalemate continued until the end of the first half before Napoli finally scored first. It was a well-coordinated move by the visitors that led to Jose Callejon finishing from a tight angle.

However, the game changed in the second half when Juventus attacked strongly. Just 1 minute after the break, Dybala won a penalty for his team after entering the Napoli penalty area and being fouled by Kalidou Koulibaly. The Argentine striker himself accurately took the kick from 11m to equalize for his team.

Higuain (right) scored 2 goals in 2 matches against Napoli. Photo: AFP.

Juventus took a 2-1 lead in the 64th minute when Higuain scored, the Argentine striker's second goal against his former club in two meetings since moving to Turin last summer for a record fee in Italy.

Not stopping there, 5 minutes later, Juventus were awarded another penalty when Juan Cuadrado fell in the penalty area after colliding with goalkeeper Pepe Reina. However, this was a somewhat heavy-handed decision by the referee as subsequent slow-motion replays showed that the Napoli goalkeeper had touched the ball before colliding with the Colombian player.

Dybala continued to successfully kick this penalty, bringing a 3-1 victory for Juventus. With this victory, "The Old Lady" is in an advantage before entering the second leg on April 5.

According to TNO