Date: January 22, 2022
Time: 20:45 CET, 14:45 EST
Atalanta gets back to action after its thrilling draw last Sunday against the table leaders, this time further south in the Eternal City. Lazio proved to be a tough customer for Atalanta last time out, as La Dea needed a last minute volleyed goal from the anything but clinical Marten de Roon to steal a point at home.
Based on Lazio’s goal scoring record it is safe to assume Ciro Immobile and company have adopted quite well to ‘Sarri-ball.’ The first year head coach has turned up the screws on the offensive side, having scored 46 goals so far this year – good for 3rd in the league. Oppositely, defense has been optional for the Biancoceleste. As impressive as its 46 goals scored is, shipping away 39 goals – from an absolute value perspective – is just as eye-catching. In fact, Lazio’s record in prevent goals is so putrid, Empoli is the only other team in the top 14 that have given up at least 39 goals. Knowing the penchant both clubs have for scoring, you would not be marked a fool for predicted a goal-fest. However, everyone said the same thing last week before Atalanta and Inter played to a goalless draw….
Lazio Player to Watch- Ciro Immobile
The Lazio captain has quietly put together an excellent season, in which another 20 goal season is a near guarantee. For all the love Dusan Vlahovic is getting this year, Immobile has equaled the Serb’s goal tally at 17 goals – reaching his figure with two less penalties to boot. Immobile seems to be a perfect fit for the Maurizio Sarri offense, as the Italian gets to use his excellent positioning and movement to work the space left unoccupied by confounded defenses scrambling to recoup on the counter. Immobile burned Atalanta a couple times last match, and will be a handful again for a backline that will most likely be inviting the counter attack into its territory.
Atalanta Passione’s Predicted Starting XI
Gian Piero Gasperini shocked us all last week, finally opting for a back four formation after nearly a year of looking at it on the shelf. Granted he was forced to use it out of necessity, with 7 Atalanta players out for injury and COVID. This time around the club has been very quiet on the status of who will be available on Saturday. It is entirely probable that La Dea again will be without Joakim Maehle, Hans Hateboer, Josip Ilicic, Ruslan Malinovskyi, and Rafael Toloi exclusively to COVID. With so few defenders at Gasperini’s expense, knowing what we know now, a back four may again be in the cards.
Which is not entirely a bad thing. The Inter match introduced the Remo Freuler, Marten de Roon, and Teun Koopmeiners trio to the world, and it was a sight to behold. All three were immense in their respective roles, and in another match where the midfield battle may determine who comes out victorious, seeing all three in the starting lineup would be ideal.
Further up the pitch the industrious up front work of Matteo Pessina and Mario Pasalic is a positive, but Atalanta misses out on sufficient creativity when both the ‘MPs’ are paired in the attacking midfield. Atalanta could use the talents of Malinovskyi or Ilicic to offer some more offensive creativity – or even Aleskei Miranchuk, provided that he is not almost on the way out the door during the winter transfer window.
Three Small Keys to Three Big Points
Let Luis Muriel Cook Against Luiz Felipe- In the several Lazio matches I have seen this year, Luiz Felipe’s aggressiveness and excitement has stood out. Keen to go to ground for a sliding tackle, Luis Muriel’s trickery could cause a lot of problems for the centerback who is already not in the best form. I’d look to get the Colombian in as many one-on-one battles against Felipe as possible.
Immediately Seek Out Ciro Immobile After a Turnover- Ciro Immobile doesn’t forgive mistakes on the counter attack, so it would behoove Atalanta to immediately, and almost instinctively, pick up the Lazio captain when they are ready to break. Without Mattia Zaccagni and Pedro, Immobile will have less help up front on the break, amplifying the necessity of always zoning in on Immobile.
Frustrate Sergej Milinkovic-Savic- Without old home videos, we can’t determine if SMS could take his brother in a fight, but we do know that Teun Koopmeiners kept the elite Serbian quiet last time these two clubs faced off. SMS is the heart and soul of Lazio’s midfield, and a duo of Koopmeiners and de Roon switching on and off to pester SMS may be the ticket to comfortably winning the midfield battle (especially with Toma Basic and Danilo Cataldi absent for Saturday).
Other Atalanta and Lazio Match Odds and Ends
According to transfermarkt.com Sergej Milinkovic-Savic makes up a quarter of Lazio’s club value ($77m out of $299m). An insane value and stat. While dollar values is not the end all be all, it is an interesting tidbit on how thin Lazio can appear after its first tier of elite players. SMS, Luis Alberto, and Immobile alone comprise 50% of the club’s value.
If Roberto Piccoli and Aleskei Miranchuk are ultimately destined to some place in Liguria, Atalanta may only have three attacking options at its disposal; Luis Muriel, Mario Pasalic, and Matteo Pessina. There has not been a lot of noise around Duvan Zapata’s return, but getting him back to the lineup would come in awfully handy.
Let’s watch for Manuel Lazzari, if he plays. He’s been softly connected to Atalanta as a potential summer signing, as he tends to fit better in a back three setup. His pace and offensive contribution is very good, but can he do the defensive work?
If Atalanta can snatch a victory on Sunday, the boys can put themselves 10 points ahead of Lazio in the table with a game in hand. Matches are never easy against Lazio, as documented by the last two times the squads faced off, and there still seems to be bad blood between the organizations. Victory here would feel sweeter than most, and with the opportunity to perhaps put the nail in the coffin of Lazio’s Champion’s League chances – it’s quite the position to be in. Let’s grab the match by the horns on Saturday, and as always Forza Dea!!!
