Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri hailed new signings Dusan Vlahovic and Denis Zakaria but acknowledged his side were lucky to edge past Sassuolo in the Coppa Italia. 

Paulo Dybala fired in the opener at the Allianz Stadium after just three minutes in Thursday's quarter-final, but Hamed Traore soon restored parity 

Allegri's side twice struck the woodwork in the second half, with Matthijis de Ligt missing a gilt-edged opportunity, but a late winner arrived when Vlahovic's effort deflected past Gianluca Pegolo after an attempted Ruan block. 

Victory meant Juve have qualified for the Coppa Italia semi-finals in seven of the last eight seasons, while no side has made it past the quarter-final stage on more occasions than the Bianconeri (10) since the 2006-07 season. 

Much of the credit Allegri gave to his players after the game was aimed at new additions Zakaria and Vlahovic, the latter of whom made a January move from Fiorentina in a transfer that could be worth up to €80million. 

 

"We are happy with the signings of Vlahovic and Zakaria, who have integrated well," Allegri told Mediaset. 

"We are happy to have Vlahovic, who still needs to improve as much at attacking the depth better, but this is part of the improvement of each player.  

"We also had luck after a good second half, their goal made us leave the game but then we woke up." 

Juve's fortunes have slowly been changing. They have won nine of their 13 games since the start of December and have moved up to fourth in Serie A – eight points behind leaders Inter, who have a game in hand. 

But when asked if Juve could make a late charge for the Scudetto, Allegri swiftly dismissed the suggestions: "We are potentially 11 points behind Inter.  

"We have to make the race against Atalanta and we will have to be ready: it will be head-to-head until the end. The others are out of reach." 

Vlahovic may take the plaudits, including from Allegri, for his role in the winning goal, but he failed to replicate the form he showed when scoring on his debut against Hellas Verona last Sunday. 

The striker missed the target with three of his five shots, while also squandering a glorious first-half chance, but the Serbia international expressed his satisfaction with how he is settling in as he heaped praise on his attacking colleagues Dybala and Alvaro Morata. 

"We are only at the beginning, but as I said last time, I owe a lot to my team-mates, to the coach, to the whole club, who have welcomed me very well, they are helping me a lot," Vlahovic said. 

"It would not have been possible without the team. For me it is an honour to play here, to help my team-mates and to be available to the team. 

"They [Dybala and Morata] are two very good guys, after great champions, great players, they have won a lot. I'm the youngest, I'm here to listen to them and try to reach their levels." 

The Bianconeri will look to continue their fine run of form when they return to Serie A action against fellow top-four contenders Atalanta on Sunday. 

Mikel Arteta wants to talk to the Premier League officials after Gabriel Martinelli's unusual dismissal in Arsenal's 1-0 win over Wolves. 

Gabriel Magalhaes put Arsenal in front against the run of play at Molineux on Thursday but the Gunners were forced to cling on for a first victory of 2022 after Martinelli saw red. 

The Brazilian lost his composure after being denied a free-kick and was shown two yellow cards at once by referee Michael Oliver in the 69th minute. 

The first was for attempting to stop Daniel Podence taking a throw-in and the second was for barging Chiquinho over after chasing the ball back. 

It was the 15th red card Arsenal have received in all competitions since Arteta took over in December 2019 – seven more than any other Premier League side in that time frame. 

The Spaniard is eager for an explanation after what he considered an unprecedented dismissal. 

"It's the first time I've seen a red card like this in 18 years that I've been in this league. I think you have to be pretty willing to give a red card in that situation," Arteta said. 

"But it's what happened. We know that playing with 10 men in this league you're not going to get the points that we want and we have to stop it. 

"But to be fair, it's difficult to find more arguments and more ways to transmit that to the players. Everybody says it's the most disciplined group they've seen in the last 15 years, but still we are getting red cards for other things. 

"If you ask me if I'm happy with the decisions we've had this season, I'm not at all. But that's a conversation I will have privately with the officials. We need explanations, we need explanations with what happened in VAR and I need explanations with what happened today." 

Wolves boss Bruno Lage also complained about the officiating at Molineux.

He felt Gabriel's goal – the first his side have conceded from a corner in the top-flight this term – should have been disallowed for a foul by Alexandre Lacazette on goalkeeper Jose Sa. Lage also questioned why an own goal by Granit Xhaka was chalked off for offside against Raul Jimenez. 

"I think there were two strange decisions, especially for our 'goal'. But we continue to work," said Lage. 

"I saw the Arsenal goal and the striker kicked Jose Sa's hand. It's clear, so clear. When you look at the image it's a strange decision. 

"I'm disappointed because I thought we were the better team. Our tempo was very good and we managed the game well but we didn't score our chances and we suffered from a set piece." 

Mikaela Shiffrin has two ugly DNF marks by her name so far at the Winter Olympics, but it could be third time lucky for the American on Friday.

The 26-year-old took home one gold medal from both the 2014 Sochi Games and 2018 in Pyeongchang, and came to Beijing with high hopes of adding to that haul.

Ester Ledecka is among the rivals who will also be targeting the super-G podium, while other multiple champions in action elsewhere on Friday include Shaun White and Dario Cologna.

Here, Stats Perform previews each of the day's medal events. 

Alpine skiing

Shiffrin took super-G gold at the 2019 World Championships, so she cannot be counted out here, providing she cuts out the errors and finishes the course.

Italians Federica Brignone, Elena Curtoni and Sofia Goggia are 1-2-3 in the World Cup standings, so should be factors, while Czech star Ledecka is chasing a second extraordinary double. She took snowboard parallel giant slalom gold earlier in the Games, and after winning both that and the super-G in 2018, she cannot be ruled out.

Switzerland's Lara Gut-Behrami won the world title last year and sits fifth in the World Cup standings, but a reigning world champion has never won gold in the women's Olympic super-G.

Biathlon

Can Norway's Marte Olsbu Roeiseland upgrade from silver four years ago in the women's 7.5km sprint? Her World Cup form has been good, with two wins in the sprints, so gold is a realistic aim. She already has one gold from Beijing, in the team relay, and a bronze from the 15km individual.

Norway's Tiril Eckhoff has not shown her best form in the World Cup this year, but Roeiseland's compatriot is the reigning world champion, a two-time Olympic relay gold medallist, and could come into the equation.

Cross-country skiing

Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo won gold in the sprint and should again be a factor in Friday's men's 15km classic, but the Norwegian says Finland's Iivo Niskanen is the hottest prospect for top of the podium. 

"He's definitely the favourite I would say, together with [Alexander] Bolshunov," said Klaebo. "All of us need to have the best day we can have, and it will be tough but we're just going to give it all and hopefully manage to have a good day and to have good skis and everything and then for sure it's possible."

Swiss veteran Cologna has won this event in the last three Olympics, but a four-peat seems an unlikely prospect.

Short track speed skating

Netherlands' Suzanne Schulting competes in the women's 1,000m, looking to defend the title, which has not been achieved since Lee-kyung Chun did so in 1998. South Korea and China have won 16 of the 21 medals in this event since its Olympic debut in 1994.

Skeleton

Christopher Grotheer was star of the show as the men's skeleton began on Thursday, leading by 0.70 seconds after two runs. That is a significant gap, with the German's closest rival being his compatriot Alex Jungk.

World champion Grotheer said: "The first run was brilliant, and the second run was also really good. I have a really good first day and I hope [on Friday] I can show this performance too."

Snowboard

American White heads into the halfpipe knowing this will be his career swan song, having decided to retire. Three times a gold medallist, the 35-year-old is bidding to become the first man to win individual gold medals at four Winter Olympics.

White was fourth in qualifying, with Japan's Ayumu Hirano leading the way.

Speed skating

Sweden's Nils van der Poel has made his mark on and off the rink in Beijing, winning gold in the men's 5,000m before making a raft of accusations, claiming the dominant Netherlands team have unduly influenced racing conditions. He goes again on Friday in the men's 10,000m and is the likely champion.

Andy Murray suffered defeat in the second round of the Rotterdam Open as he fell in straight sets to Felix Auger-Aliassime, while Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas progressed. 

Murray, who triumphed at this tournament in 2009, battled past Alexander Bublik in his opening match but struggled to replicate that form against Auger-Aliassime on Thursday. 

The Scot was never in control against the world number nine, who will face Murray's fellow Briton Cameron Norrie in the quarter-final, as he was downed 6-3 6-4 by the third seed. 

"From the start of the match I was ready and focused and I think that is why I was able to produce a high level from the first point," Auger-Aliassime said on court after his victory.  

"He made me bring out my best tennis and I am really happy with the way I played and that I was able to stay ahead. [To] win in straight sets is a great relief." 

Top seed Tsitsipas, who was a beaten semi-finalist in this event last year, made light work of Ilya Ivashka as he raced to a 6-4 6-1 triumph in just one hour and 11 minutes to tee up a last-eight meeting with Alex de Minaur. 

Reigning champion Rublev cruised past Soonwoo Kwon in similar fashion with a 6-3 6-3 win to secure his seventh straight victory at the ATP 500 tournament. 

Meanwhile, qualifier Jiri Lehecka recovered from a first-set scare against Botic van de Zandschulp to succeed 1-6 6-4 6-4, with Lorenzo Musetti awaiting the Czech in the next round. 

Atalanta director general Umberto Marino was unhappy with what he believed was a "serious error" to allow Nikola Milenkovic's 93rd-minute winner to stand as Fiorentina triumphed 3-2 at Gewiss Stadium in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals. 

A ninth-minute Krzysztof Piatek penalty was overturned by goals from Davide Zappacosta and Jeremie Boga to give Atalanta the lead. 

Piatek equalised with 20 minutes remaining after having a penalty saved by Juan Musso, before Milenkovic hit a superb volleyed winner in the last few seconds of stoppage time. 

La Viola – who also had Lucas Martinez Quarta sent off with 10 minutes remaining for a second yellow card – celebrated wildly, but the hosts were unhappy the VAR chose not to overturn it, believing Giacomo Bonaventura was offside in the build-up. 

Speaking after the game, Marino told Sport Mediaset: "I can only congratulate Fiorentina and accept what happened. There are games when you get the feeling it is an uphill struggle for you and nothing is going to go your way. 

"Fiorentina always seem to have penalties against us, I don't know if they were the right decisions or not, but it's the third goal where we have serious problems. 

"Merih Demiral told me there was no foul for the free-kick that led to the goal, but I also have to ask if that Marten de Roon touch was sufficient to put Bonaventura back onside, then I have evidently understood nothing about football over all these years. 

"Mistakes can happen even with VAR, unfortunately they are happening a bit too often, including in Serie A. Not seeing an offside like that is in my view a serious error. 

"It is disappointing to miss out on a semi-final because of an incident like that in the 93rd minute. It is a serious error, I repeat, but errors are part of sport. 

"We simply have to accept them and move on." 

Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Italiano admitted he took a risk on the set-piece that led to the winner, sending several players forward in an attempt to avoid extra time with a man fewer. 

"It was a game where I think before their equaliser, we were controlling the situation and had chances to go 2-0 up, but they equalised at the first opportunity," he said. 

"At the end, I called everyone forward on the free-kick because there was genuine fear of playing extra time down to 10 men. We were aggressive, brave and lucky too to believe right to the very end." 

Dusan Vlahovic inspired a late winner as Juventus secured their place in the Coppa Italia semi-finals with a 2-1 home victory over Sassuolo on Thursday.

Reigning champions Juve raced out the blocks at the Allianz Stadium as Paulo Dybala scored after just three minutes, but Hamed Traore soon levelled things up.

The Bianconeri were twice denied by the woodwork after the break, with Matthijs de Ligt missing a golden chance, though Vlahovic fortuitously fired past Gianluca Pegolo via a heavy deflection off Ruan with two minutes remaining to send Juve through.

Massimiliano Allegri's team will now face Fiorentina – who defeated Atalanta 3-2 in the day's earlier quarter-final – in a two-legged tie across March and April.

Gabriel Magalhaes ended Arsenal's five-game winless run but they were forced to cling on for a 1-0 Premier League victory over Wolves after Gabriel Martinelli saw red. 

A disappointing start to 2022 saw Arsenal eliminated from the FA Cup by Nottingham Forest and miss out on a place in the EFL Cup final at the hands of Liverpool, but they got back to winning ways on Thursday. 

Gabriel punished Wolves' inability to turn their superiority into chances with an opportunistic finish as claims for a foul on goalkeeper Jose Sa were ignored by referee Michael Oliver. 

Martinelli receiving two yellow cards in the space of five seconds gave Wolves hope late in the second half, but they were unable to avoid slipping five points behind Arsenal in a blow to their top-four chances. 

Openings were few and far between in the first half but Gabriel took his chance in the 25th minute to put the Gunners in front against the run of play. 

Alexandre Lacazette just about beat Jose Sa to Ben White's knockdown and knocked the ball on to Gabriel, who was left with a simple finish from inside the six-yard box. 

Wolves were handed a boost when Martinelli reacted to not being awarded a free-kick by fouling Daniel Podence at a throw-in and sending Chiquinho to ground after following the ball, earning two quick-fire bookings.

Bruno Lage's side saw an own goal by Granit Xhaka from the resulting free-kick ruled out for offside against Raul Jimenez, while Lacazette missed a chance to put the result beyond doubt in the 72nd minute. 

Rob Holding replaced Bukayo Saka as Mikel Arteta looked to tighten things up at the back and he made an important block to keep Chiquinho out, ensuring the three points went back to north London.

Liverpool welcomed back Mohamed Salah and avenged a painful defeat to Leicester City as Diogo Jota's double clinched a 2-0 win at Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp's men lost to the Foxes during a tough three-game run in the Premier League from December 19 to January 2, when Liverpool took just two points and Manchester City pulled away at the top.

This time it was the Reds who prevailed, Jota making the difference on a night when the hosts could have filled their boots. Former Reds boss Brendan Rodgers, enduring a tough campaign, was thankful for goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel keeping the visitors in the game with a string of saves.

Liverpool's newest recruit Luis Diaz made his Premier League debut and looked at home on the left of the front three, before substitute Salah, back from the Africa Cup of Nations, added pep to the hosts' attack late on.

James Maddison had a decent early chance for Leicester, with Alisson forced to tip over the bar from the midfielder. A powerful strike from Trent Alexander-Arnold at the other end was then too close to Schmeichel who was able to push the ball behind.

Liverpool edged ahead in the 34th minute when a powerful Virgil van Dijk header from Alexander-Arnold's corner was blocked by Schmeichel before Jota blasted in the loose ball from five yards.

Jota scooped over from close range just before the hour mark after Van Dijk won another header from a corner, with Liverpool looking to lock up the points. Klopp sent on Salah, fresh from Egypt duty, as Roberto Firmino made way on the hour mark.

Diaz rattled a shot into the Kop after running at the Leicester defence before Salah had a strike charged down by Schmeichel. Salah then looked sure to score as he raced through, only for Schmeichel to palm away his dinked shot on goal.

Salah hit the angle of left post and crossbar with a 20-yard attempt before Diaz had a scorcher repelled by the busy Schmeichel. Jota tied up the win in the 87th minute though, beating Schmeichel with a strike into the left corner after a nudge through from Joel Matip.

A four-team trade deal between the Detroit Pistons, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Sacramento Kings will include Marvin Bagley III heading to the Pistons and Serge Ibaka being picked up by the Bucks, according to reports.

Donte DiVincenzo is among the players heading to the Kings, while the Clippers receive Rodney Hood and Semi Ojeleye from Milwaukee.

Bagley, who was the second overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, averaged 13.5 points and 7.4 rebounds with the Kings having faced numerous injuries and struggled to fully establish himself in Sacramento.

Ibaka will join the Bucks as the NBA champions add someone with Finals experience from his time at the Toronto Raptors and Oklahoma City Thunder. The 32-year-old averages 6.6 points and 4.3 rebounds in 35 games this season.

The Bucks also receive two future second-round draft picks as well as cash considerations.

Sacramento, who only added Domantas Sabonis in a trade with Indiana on Tuesday, procured DiVincenzo from Milwaukee, as well as Josh Jackson and Trey Lyles from Detroit.

DiVincenzo has an average of 7.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists in his 17 games so far this season, while Lyles is currently enjoying a career-best average of 10.4 points this year.

Hood and Ojeleye bolster the Clippers' depth having only featured from the bench this season for Milwaukee.

The Los Angeles Rams are in the Super Bowl thanks to stunning seasons from the likes of Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald, but it turns out Dr Dre might have had something to do with it too. 

Sunday's Halftime Show will be a parade of hip hop royalty, with Dre set to be joined on stage by Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige. 

A cultural icon in Los Angeles, Dre is delighted to be sharing the spotlight with the hometown team, claiming to have spoken their success into existence. 

"Who else could do this show here in LA, who else could perform the Halftime Show other than these amazing artists that we put together for this thing?" Dre said during the Halftime Show media conference on Thursday. 

"Not only that, I've been manifesting the Rams, since the beginning of the season, I'm just thinking about it every day, I'm meditating on it and I'm like: 'Okay, it would be perfect if we are in the Super Bowl performing and the Rams are in the game as well.'" 

Dre promised surprises in the show, though he would not go into any further detail. 

He and Snoop vowed there would be no wardrobe malfunctions. Dre joked he had dissuaded him and Eminem from any provocative displays during the performance. 

Snoop, though, expects to have the greatest impact during the show. 

Asked what he wants the audience to take from the concert, Snoop replied: "[That] I'm the greatest to ever do it. 

"Somebody gotta say it, Tom Brady wouldn't say it, I'm the GOAT." 

And although Snoop is a fully fledged Pittsburgh Steelers fan, he is backing the Rams to keep the Lombardi Trophy at SoFi Stadium. "I gotta go with LA," he said. 

In a moderated conversation, Dre, Snoop and Mary J all emphasised how much work has gone into the show. 

Asked what will be on her mind once the performance is done, Mary J said: "A drink. A really nice tall drink because I've just been so focused on me and the Super Bowl." 

With Dre describing their act as "f*****g incredible" and Snoop labelling it "magnifico", one of the most anticipated Halftime Shows in Super Bowl history appears set to be one not to forget. 

The United States are finally on the move at the Winter Olympics, soaring from 10th to fourth place on the medal table after three golden moments on Thursday.

There were triumphs for Nathan Chen in figure skating, Chloe Kim in the snowboard halfpipe, and the freeski mixed team aerials trio, hoisting Team USA to four golds in China and 10 medals overall.

Historically, only Norway have won more gold medals than the USA at the Winter Olympics.

Germany continue to top the medal table after landing luge team relay gold late on in Thursday's programme, with Norway in second and Austria third.

Chen produced a mesmerising display in a routine to Elton John's 'Rocket Man' as he delivered on the ice, and he said afterwards: "Historically I skated to pretty slower-paced, more classical pieces, so bringing in this faster-pace, very exciting, very happy programme was something I wasn't totally adjusted to from the beginning.

"But as we started working on it, it was something that totally made sense, and was just so much fun to skate to. This programme, no matter what, is always fun for me to skate.

"It means the world. I'm just so happy. It's a whirlwind right now. I had a blast out there."

Kim savoured her success at Genting Snow Park, but the 21-year-old, competing in her second Games after also striking gold in Pyeongchang, is making no promises she will be back for more at Milano Cortina 2026.

She told reporters: "I genuinely don't know how many more Olympics I'm going to do, it's all about how am I feeling mentally and physically.

"What you guys need to understand is this isn't an easy sport. It's really hard. And all the ladies make it look really easy, but I promise you, if any of you tried to do half the things they did, it wouldn't end very well."

Christopher Lillis and the power couple of Ashley Caldwell and Justin Schoenefeld delivered the aerials gold.

Caldwell, who made her Winter Olympics debut as a 16-year-old in 2010, said: "I couldn't be more excited. This is my fourth Games, and I've been in the hunt for a gold medal my entire career.

"To do it with these guys is incredible. Chris has been like a brother to me forever, and Justin is the love of my life, so that really helps."

Medal table:

1. Germany (G6 S3 B0, Total: 9)
2. Norway (G5 S3 B4, Total: 12)
3. Austria (G4 S5 B4, Total: 13)
4. United States (G4 S5 B1, Total: 10)
5. Netherlands (G4 S3 B1, Total: 8)
6. Sweden (G4 S1 B2, Total: 7)
7. China (G3 S3 B0, Total: 6)
8. Italy (G2 S4 B2, Total: 8)
9. Russian Olympic Committee (G2 S3 B6, Total: 11)
10. Slovenia (G2 S1 B2, Total: 5)

James Harden is leaving the Brooklyn Nets to join the Philadelphia 76ers, according to reports.

The teams have agreed a trade that will see Harden move to Philadelphia, while Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond head the other way, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski said.

The deal reportedly also includes the Sixers sending the Nets an unprotected 2022 first-round pick as well as a protected 2027 first-round pick. The Nets will also include Paul Millsap in the deal.

Simmons was the subject of trade rumours in January 2021 when the Sixers pursued Harden from the Houston Rockets. Harden instead headed for the Nets, and Simmons saw out the season in Philadelphia, only for speculation to ramp up again after a deeply dissatisfying playoff exit.

Simmons has not played since June when Joel Embiid and Doc Rivers appeared to blame the former first overall pick for a Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

James Harden is leaving the Brooklyn Nets to join the Philadelphia 76ers, according to reports.

The teams have agreed a trade that will see Harden move to Philadelphia, while Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond head the other way, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski said.

The deal reportedly also includes the Sixers sending the Nets an unprotected 2022 first-round pick as well as a protected 2027 first-round pick. The Nets will also include Paul Millsap in the deal.

Simmons was the subject of trade rumours in January 2021 when the Sixers pursued Harden from the Houston Rockets. Harden instead headed for the Nets, and Simmons saw out the season in Philadelphia, only for speculation to ramp up again after a deeply dissatisfying playoff exit.

Simmons has not played since June when Joel Embiid and Doc Rivers appeared to blame the former first overall pick for a Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

The 25-year-old Simmons averaged 14.3 points per game last season from his 58 appearances, plus 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists.

Harden, 32, has failed to settle in Brooklyn since arriving from Houston last January, averaging just 22.5 points per game this season, his lowest average since the 2011-12 season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, as well as 8.0 rebounds and 10.2 assists.

Curry has been enjoying the best season of his career in Philadelphia, averaging 15.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game, while Drummond has managed just 6.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game, the worst return of his career.

Petra Kvitova crashed out of the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy, but Jelena Ostapenko is safely through to the quarter-finals.

Two-time grand slam champion Kvitova was comfortably beaten in straight sets by Irina-Camelia Begu, with the Romanian winning 6-4 6-0 in just one hour and nine minutes.

The effectiveness of the first serve was the main difference-maker, with Begu winning 73.1 per cent of her first-serve points, while Kvitova – who has 28 singles titles to her name in contrast to her opponents' four – could only manage 50 per cent.

Begu was set to face the winner of Tereza Martincova's tie with Elena Rybakina, but the latter withdrew because of illness.

Seventh seed Ostapenko made light work of Andrea Petkovic as she beat the German 6-1 6-2 in just 58 minutes, helped largely by winning 85.3 per cent of her first serves, as well as saving all five of the break points she offered up.

Ostapenko has now won two of her four meetings with Petkovic and will next face Aliaksandra Sasnovich, who eased to a 6-2 6-3 victory over Jaqueline Cristian.

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