The first thing that pops into my mind when thinking about this match is shades of Benevento. Quite similar to our match 5 days ago, Atalanta had a one goal lead at half after dominating the entire first 45 minutes, quickly gave up an equalizer in the 2nd half, woke up, and then became ruthless to put the game away. Different lineup, different opponent, nearly the same outcome. Now while scoring 3+ goals and holding an opponent to 1 is all well and good, Atalanta should have had at least 5 goals in this game. Asides for some heroics from Alessio Cragno’s backup Guglielmo Vicario, Atalanta could have been scoring at will. However, given La Dea had 14 shots on target, one would expect their finishing to be a bit more clinical. Too many shots right at Vicario, allowed Cagliari to just hang around, and a full strength Cagliari side may have capitalized on being permitted to stay in the match.
I don’t want to dwell too much on the negatives, considering the overall dominate performance Atalanta put forth. In a barrage of offense, Djimsiti and Romero again stood out to me as rocks at the back, and I absolutely love having them as two-thirds of the back three. However, considering that the Coppa Italia is a good opportunity for some of the super-subs to shine, I wanted to look a little deeper at 3 guys: Bosko Sutalo, Joakim Maehle, and Aleksey Miranchuk.
Bosko Sutalo: He scored a goal! Let’s start there congrats to the Croatian on his first goal in Atalanta colors on a corner that was laid on his feet like a filet mignon on a silver platter. Goal aside, I’m still a bit concerned about Sutalo’s physicality. Granted the kid just turned 21 so he still has time to grow, but Sottil bullied him leading to Cagliari’s goal. Sutalo’s lack of strength gave Sottil a clear run at goal, that none of Toloi, Djimsiti, or Romero would have let happen. Given Sutalo isn’t a burner to keep up with that type of pace, he still needs to add some muscle to be able to bully attackers more viciously. In my opinion that will be the telling factor if he can eventually crack Gasperini’s rotation. For now, he still needs a little work in that department, but I’m hopeful he can gain some Balkan strength like his countrymen Lovren and Vida (aggressive mentality still TBD).
Joakim Maehle: His match wasn’t quiet, but wasn’t world-class either (Gosens may have spoiled us a little). Though it is encouraging that he adeptly played on both wings in the same match, and already seems very comfortable in the tactical setup. His positioning is already quite good, he won’t make silly mistakes on defense, and he can put a good forward run in. He was caught a little out of position on the Sottil goal, but I’ll give him a pass due to that fact that Sutalo should’ve covered the 1v1 and he’d have probably been scolded had he not been bombing into the box like a good Gasperini winger (I still think Djimsiti was yelling in his direction wondering where he was post goal). I think as he continues to grow and get more comfortable in the lineup we’ll see him flourish more, and perhaps add some flair to the match that Hateboer isn’t quite capable of providing. Right now we’re only seeing his floor, fortunately that floor is already quite high.
Aleksey Miranchuk: Miraculously, Miranchuk has scored in his Serie A debut, Champion’s League debut, and now Coppa Italia debut with La Dea! Quite a feat, whichever way you try to rub it! And today he showed the quality that a lot were expecting of him. His goal was a neat piece of footwork to handle a flailing deflection, and he had two other good chances to score, but was denied by a combo of good goalkeeping and only average shot placement. But he’s a creator, so I’m not gonna bash the guy for not drilling shots into the top corner like clockwork. Fortunately, Miranchuk did have his creative chops on display. He was much more aggressive in driving the offense forward; and while he may have lost possession a few times and had a heavy touch on several occasions, his persistence to attack kept Cagliari on the back foot the entire first half. Lesha and Malinovskyi were feeding Muriel like a 12 pound newborn baby; and more than anything his mindset to attack was a breath of fresh air to get the stink out of the Bologna game where he was tame and timid. Shoring up his technique a bit, and I still think we may have our baby-Ilicic.
Next up in the Coppa will either be Lazio or Parma (probably Lazio) and with two sided draws coming, getting enough rotation going will be instrumental. I liked the way Gasperini handled the rotation today, although I would’ve liked to see Lammers get some time, and perhaps Gyabuaa for a quick spell. When Pasalic comes back, we’ll have five good midfield options (plus whatever is happening with Depaoli) to cover the attacking midfield and double pivot roles, and mix and match based on the matchup. It’s a good spot to be in depth wise, and I feel pretty good about the prospect of playing on three fronts. Not great, but as good as you can feel playing in three tournaments simultaneously. Good win boys, now time to get back to focus on the league and put Genoa on the back heel! As always, Forza La Dea!
