Amid all the Cristian Romero hullaballoo, Atalanta took everyone by surprise fortifying the back line by landing the young Hellas Verona centerback Matteo (Not Demi) Lovato. A name that Atalanta was loosely linked to very early in the summer, rumors had died down for some time – so it comes as quite the surprise that La Dea were able to pull off such a move independent of all the swirling around star centerback Romero. Apparently inked for 8M euros now with 3M in bonuses, it feels like Atalanta made quite the coup given his loftier price tag a month ago.
Lovato comes to La Dea off a good season under the tutelage of Ivan Juric at Hellas Verona as a key member of it’s back three defensive line. He stood out convincingly in Verona’s victory over Atalanta early in 2020, holding his ground confidently against Duvan Zapata and helping lead his team to a clean sheet. While the return leg saw Duvan get the better of the young Italian, a lack of consistency isn’t too surprising for a twenty-one year old from Monselice – and will be his biggest sticking point as he looks to improve in black and blue.
Capable of playing anywhere in the back three, Lovato becomes the perfect depth piece for Gasperini to rotate throughout the expected busy calendar.
I like this move for a multitude of reasons for Atalanta. First, it gives La Dea another Italian to register for European play, maximizing it’s roster space and depth. Two, the price is great for a U21 international who is familiar with a very similar defensive system – and already graded out very well in a multitude of defensive statistics in his first season in Serie A. And three, its a move that serve’s Atalanta’s immediate and future needs.
Lovato will not be thrust into a starting role at Atalanta. Therefore, he can take time to develop in the system – and will not be called upon to be a rock at the back with Atalanta’s core (plus another major splash at the back) leading the way. Yet, he’s still shown the capability of being a strong force at the back for Hellas. I know there were a myriad of reasons why Hellas faltered to only seven points in its final thirteen Serie A matches last year… but Lovato only played in 195 of those final 1,170 minutes, and he started in its only victory in that time over Cagliari. Causation??? Perhaps… Regardless, everything points to him having the tools to become a force under Gasperini.
Lovato’s signing was a welcoming and simultaneously an out-of-leftfield surprise for myself. Atalanta have now completed three signings – and the three commonalities all these deals have is relative quietness before the official announcements. This is quite the stark difference from the wild Pobega, Koopmeiners, and Tomiyasu rumors that have persisted throughout the summer. Therefore it gives me hope that Atalanta is still working the phones away from the large ears of the media to land the necessary deals before the season starts. Koopmeiners chatter has been quiet for a long time, and after all the done-and-dusted confirmed deals this summer, the relative quietness around Teun has me more cautiously optimistic that something will still get done.
Back to the matter at hand…Lovato’s an excellent building block for Atalanta to build another Champion’s League squad, Gasperini is just a piece or two away – and let’s hope big things continue to drop this week. Benvento alla Dea Matteo, and as always Forza Dea!
