It took awhile for Atalanta to wake up, but the boys came alive when it mattered the most. Adding to the pandemonium, the unlikeliest of Atalanta players put away both goals in quick succession. Indeed Berat Djimsit, who had not scored in thirteen months for La Dea, was Atalanta’s hero – helping his squad to secure victory on consecutive corner kicks. Atalanta had been pounding on the door all match, but in do or die draws take your goals however they happen to fall – even if their off corners finished by a centerback! Now up two goals to one before a trip across the Adriatic Sea to Greece, La Dea can look to right the wrongs that made the first leg of the fixture more challenging than it would have hoped.
A Tale of Two Halves
Nothing went right for Atalanta in the first half. A blistering shot from 25 yards out by Tiquinho Soares was able to sneak by Juan Musso, and Atalanta spent most of the trying to crack Olympiacos’s defense. A defense that at times looked impenetrable, Atalanta actually aided the Greek side’s herculean defensive effort with an array of aimless offense. Matteo Pessina and Luis Muriel offered very little, bringing a deflated approach to the attack. Additionally, minimal attack filtered through the middle of the pitch, as Atalanta frequently pinned themselves on the flanks with hardly any room to work the ball into the box. To add insult to injury, Atalanta’s best and maybe only encouraging attack in the first half resulted in a goal that was ruled offside. It just looked like it was going to be one of those games.
But then the second half rolled around, and Atalanta was revitalized. It helped that the dynamic duo of Jeremie Boga and Teun Koopmeiners entered the game for La Dea’s two worst first half performers. The attack instantly became more lively, and Atalanta’s eventual goal(s) looked inevitable. Oddly enough for a club that has been so poor on corners this year, no one would have expected both decisive finishes to come off set pieces. Let alone goals deftly finished off by a centerback. The goals resulted from a revived offense, and unlike Sunday night the defense finished off the job to seal the victory.
And now, a lead on aggregate goes a long way to making the final leg of the fixtures much less nervy.
A Review of the Three Keys to Three Points
Strike Fast- It was iterated enough above, but Atalanta did itself no favors going into the second half. With only one shot on target in the first half – Atalanta spent all match playing catch up. Fortunately the boys caught fire when it mattered.
Be Direct In Attack- Again, the offense moved at a snail’s pace in the first half – letting Olympiacos comfortably settle into its ultra defensive 5-4-1 shape. Even when Boga entered the match in the second half, he was all about the hesitation dribble. It may be nice to see him look to be more direct, but it is definitely a breath of fresh air to see someone not fall to the ground with the slightest bit of contact.
Overlap Like No Tomorrow- The Joakim Maehle and Rafael Toloi connection was effective on the right hand side, but with so much offense build up initiating from the left – Giuseppe Pezzella and Berat Djimsiti could have offered more in the build up. Pezzella was frequently pinned on the flank, due to a good defensive setup by Olympiacos, and that made it even tougher for him, Boga, and Djimsiti to create.
Atalanta Passione Match Ratings
Goalkeeper: 6.5 – Juan Musso had little chance to stop Soares’s shot, and besides that effort Olympiacos gave him nothing else to do all match.
Defense: 7.5 – Besides Djimsiti’s well taken goals, Merih Demiral didn’t give Soares a sniff, and Rafael Toloi was his usual steady self.
Wingbacks: 6.5 – Pezzella put himself in a few spots of bother, and conceded a foolish yellow in stoppage time that was easily avoidable. His counterpart, Maehle, on the right looked great going forward but just lacked the final ball a few times. Nonetheless, it is good to see Maehle putting in nice performances again after being seemingly absent for the last month.
Midfield: 5.5 – de Roon was dependable, but Matteo Pessina and Mario Pasalic were poor double pivot partners for the Dutchman. So bad in fact, that it could have propelled Atalanta to victory – as it forced Teun Koopmeiners into the match.
Attack: 5.5 – Mario Pasalic looked uneasy in his patchwork striker duty again, but Luis Muriel put in his second consecutive stinker. Heavy touches, unconfident shots, and general discomfort on the pitch have him miles away from his best form. Fortunately, Ruslan Malinovskyi continues to look spirited.
Substitutes: 7.5 – Teun Koopmeiners and Jeremie Boga’s presence turned the tables. Additionally, Remo Freuler calmly did Remo Freuler things and even Valentin Mihaila was a dangerous outlet to help defeat Olympiacos’s late press.
Atalanta Passione Man of the Match- Berat Djimsiti
How could it be anyone else? A brace has to get you man of the match, especially if you’re a defender! Besides his well taken goals, the left side of the pitch was on lock down like the rest of the defense. Not much else to say, besides he bailed Atalanta out with his prowess in the box!
With no away goal rule in European competitions this year, Atalanta can breathe a little easier going into next week’s tie. A draw is all La Dea needs to advance, and knowing Atalanta’s penchant for succeeding on the road, the Bergamaschi are comfortably in the driver’s seat. Playing at home first can be a tricky scenario, because a poor result compounds with the next fixture having to be played in a different country (just ask Dortmund). So leaving nothing to chance and securing the victory and the early aggregate advantage can permit the boys to play more loosely. And now that Gian Piero knows who his automatic starters are (looking at you Koopmeiners and Boga), hopefully proceedings continue to go smoothly in Greece. Great victory today, and as always Forza Dea!!!
