Inter advances to Coppa Italia semifinal, thanks to Barella's stunner

Nicolo Barella's brilliant goal earned Inter a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Fiorentina in Wednesday's Coppa Italia quarter-final.

Inter progressed into the semifinals of the Coppa Italia.

Nicolo Barella's superb winner helped Inter Milan beat Fiorentina 2-1 at San Siro on Wednesday to set up an Italian Cup semi-final meeting with Napoli.

Antonio Candreva put Inter in front on the brink of halftime, before a Martin Caceres header drew the visitor level on the hour mark.

But a blistering strike from Barella decided the quarterfinal as the midfielder raced onto a headed clearance to rifle in a low shot on the 67th minute.

The home crowd had further reason to cheer when Christian Eriksen came off the bench to make his Inter debut, one day after signing from Tottenham Hotspur in a reported 20 million deal.

Inter, which has won the Italian Cup on seven occasions but not since 2011, will face Napoli over two legs between February and March for a place in the final, against either Juventus or AC Milan.