Yesterday I took a look at where Atalanta needs to look this summer for reinforcements, so today is all about grading the players brought in last transfer window. The articles should probably be switched, but I just got the inspiration for this article today, so bare with me! If every transfer was weighted equally, this season’s hall was a mixed bag – perhaps surprising for a squad that is universally lauded for it’s signings (rightfully so). Brilliant signings were sprinkled in with duds and some players that are too be determined. But fortunately the impact some of Atalanta’s new players had on the season overwhelmingly offsets some of the duds I’m trying to remove from my memory. Overall, it’s still an above average haul when all things are considered. All of our duds were on loan deals – so we’re not tied to any obligations or future salaries, and at the same time we’ve got players that are now cemented in the starting XI or first choice options of the bench.
Cristiano Piccini and Fabio dePaoli: F
Piccini played maybe 20 minutes, and we’d have been better off playing with 10 men than with dePaoli on the pitch. Neither man was the answer to backing up Hateboer, and both were rightly shipped off back to their original clubs before the New Year. Silver lining – their poor play forced Atalanta’s hand to sign Maehle and both players were on loans, so the club is clean of them next year.
Johan Mojica: D
I almost grouped Mojica into the failed wingback “F” category, but he at least had “flashes” at some points to be a little more than bench fodder. Obviously his talent was still not good enough, and shipping him off was the right thing to do. The Maehle silver-lining comes back again, and also gives us a chance to see what Reca can finally do in black and blue.
Viktor Kovalenko: C
Atalanta’s midseason signing from Shakhtar saw about 5 minutes of game action this year, and was either injured or a healthy scratch for most of the season. On paper this move looked interesting, as Kovalenko looked to be cover up front in the midfield as well as an option to slot into the double pivot. He got the chance to do neither, and I’m extremely curious what Atalanta’s plans are for the Ukrainian.
Sam Lammers: C+
Again, curiosity strikes again. What is Atalanta’s plan with the Dutchman? He showed flashes of technical and finishing ability this year, but he barely received any gametime after the New Year. Signed for nearly $8M, that’s a pretty penny to spend on a guy who rides the pine – especially when there were obvious chances late in matches to at least get him minutes to get his feet wet. I hope he doesn’t hop on the loan train and is cast to a similar fate like Andreas Cornelius, but this unfortunately feels more like than Lammers ever cracking the rotation.
Aleksey Miranchuk: B-
Lesha was supposed to be the premier signing of the offseason, it certainly had me excited, but the locomotive did not storm out of the gate as quickly as many would have hoped for. Still, he demonstrated the skill he has on numerous occasions, and I think Atalanta used the kid’s gloves on him a bit to help him ease over to life in Italy from a very insular Russian league. There’s still a lot to work with here, and 2021/2022 will be his time to shine. If we’re all lucky the talent is there for another Ruslan Malinovskyi like breakout
Joakim Maehle: A-
Maehle, who came in mid-season, had one of the most difficult tasks of any Atalanta players this year. 1) He had to learn a difficult Gasperini system mid-season at one of the most difficult positions in the Atalanta system. 2) Hans Hateboer got hurt almost as soon as Joakim arrived, and he was forced to start almost immediately. To say he held his own would be an understatement, and comfortably looked right at home on the right hand side. So much so that when Hateboer finally came back, I missed Maehle much more gentle touch on the ball. He’s a good egg, and should only get better with more tutelage in the system.
Cristian Romero: A
Now this is where Atalanta truly makes up for all their dud loan signings early in the year. Romero was everything for the backline this year, and his fearless and agressive nature fit perfectly into Atalanta’s setup. Once he got his feet wet in Atalanta’s back three, he was a must start when available, so much so, that Serie A awarded him with Serie A Defender of the Year Honors! Just check out these statistics from fbref.com, and how brilliant he’s truly been:
Defensively his numbers are outstanding, suggesting one of the best defenders in the league. In addition, he knows how to get forward offensively and was no slouch when it came to contributing into Atalanta’s all out attack. A brilliant signing for La Dea that will no doubt come through with an exercise of his loan option.
Overall: B
When you account for the fact that the duds were only on loan deals, and Atalanta has found at least two staples for its rotation going forward, it was a good year on the transfer market for La Dea. The questionable signings of Lammers and Kovalenko hold me off from pushing into the A territory, however if one of Lammers and Kovalenko and Miranchuk lives up to their hype – we can be looking back at this class in a few years and it could look even rosier. I think this year is still a good reminder that not every transfer works out (even for Atalanta), and its ignorant to think that they all will. Grading with this notion in mind allows one to review a season much more clearly and with an open mind on how to improve.
I think Atalanta’s brass probably learned from a lot of its loan and small signing tinkering this year – we’re seeing a lot more rumors to “bigger time” or at least permanent moves, and perhaps a move from the loan market going for the closest thing to sure-fire signings that you can get in the transfer window. It’ll be interesting to see how it plays out, but if we can get another Romero in our XI from this window, sign me up! As always, Forza Dea!!!
