Lazio Crowned Italian Supercup Champs after Defeating Juventus in Riyadh

Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
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Lazio Crowned Italian Supercup Champs after Defeating Juventus in Riyadh

Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)

Lazio beat Juventus 3-1, their second win over the Turin giants in little more than two weeks, to win the Italian Supercup on Sunday, the annual meeting between the Coppa Italia winners and Serie A champions.

Second-half goals from Senad Lulic and Danilo Cataldi won the match which was being played in Saudi Arabia for the second year running.

Chairman of the General Sport Authority Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal handed the trophy to the Lazio players.

Lazio also beat Juventus 3-1 in Serie A on Dec. 7, handing their opponents their first defeat under coach Maurizio Sarri.

Lazio, the Coppa Italia victors, went ahead after 17 minutes when Sergei Milinkovic-Savic laid the ball off for Luis Alberto to fire into the net.

Paulo Dybala levelled for the Serie A champions at the end of the first-half from a rebound after Cristiano Ronaldo's shot was parried by Thomas Strakosha.

Juventus seemed to be in control in the second half and Ronaldo was close with a shot which went just over but they were caught out when Marco Parolo's cross flew across the face of goal and Lulic volleyed in at the far post in the 73rd minute.

Juventus had midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur sent off in stoppage time and Cataldi curled the resulting free kick into the net with the last action of the game.

"I am super happy," Cataldi said. "I heard so many people say how difficult it would be to beat Juve twice in one season, let alone in a couple of weeks, but instead we lifted a trophy and beat one of the three best teams in Europe.

Juventus can content itself with heading into the winter break joint top of Serie A with Inter Milan, six points above Lazio - which has a match in hand. The Bianconeri are also in the last 16 of the Champions League.

"We came into this game with a deficit of physical and mental energy, this happens," Sarri said. "We are sorry we lost a trophy, but we still have many competitions at stake in the next five months. There is anger but crying over it does not solve the problems."

The Italian league has a contract with Saudi Arabia to play three Supercups in the country over five years.



PSG Loss Left Arsenal Players in Tears, Arteta Says 

Football - Champions League - Semi Final - Second Leg - Paris St Germain v Arsenal - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - May 7, 2025 Arsenal's Jurrien Timber and manager Mikel Arteta look dejected after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Champions League - Semi Final - Second Leg - Paris St Germain v Arsenal - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - May 7, 2025 Arsenal's Jurrien Timber and manager Mikel Arteta look dejected after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
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PSG Loss Left Arsenal Players in Tears, Arteta Says 

Football - Champions League - Semi Final - Second Leg - Paris St Germain v Arsenal - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - May 7, 2025 Arsenal's Jurrien Timber and manager Mikel Arteta look dejected after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Champions League - Semi Final - Second Leg - Paris St Germain v Arsenal - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - May 7, 2025 Arsenal's Jurrien Timber and manager Mikel Arteta look dejected after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)

Arsenal players were left in tears after Wednesday's 2-1 semi-final loss at Paris St Germain knocked them out of the Champions League, manager Mikel Arteta said in a post-match press conference.

The North London side, who lost 1-0 at home in the first leg of the tie last week, are set to finish the season without a trophy, having lost the Premier League title race to Liverpool last month after exits from the FA Cup and the League Cup earlier this year.

Arsenal, who have won one FA Cup title and two Community Shields since Arteta took over in December 2019, are in a race to finish second in the English top-flight league for the third season in a row.

"Today I see how much they want it because they were in tears," Arteta said.

"This squad, two years ago, nobody believed that we could even probably qualify for the Champions League, not even think that we could finish second and compete in the league.

"Perhaps the amount of points that we had in any other year, you are champions. But the reality at the end is you need something to lose and that trophy with all the work that we do and the disappointment is we don´t have them."

Arteta's men, who sit three points above third-placed Manchester City, visit Liverpool on Sunday.