Everyone predicted Thursday was going to be goals aplenty. So of course both teams set up to play goalless football, with the deadlock only broken by a late minute goal, that was the icing on the cake from a wonderful run from Jeremie Boga. It wasn’t easy, heck it wasn’t even pretty, but Atalanta did what it needed to do to advance. And with a spot in the quarterfinals, how it happened doesn’t matter. Gian Piero Gasperini obviously trusted his boys to put forth a stellar defensive performance, and they did not disappoint. And in the few instances that Atalanta did get feeble at the back, fortunately Juan Musso was there to bail his outfield players out.
Three Small Keys to Advancing to the Quarterfinals – Review
Mind the Bouncing Long Ball- Bayer Leverkusen was still able to get its chances from the air, but nothing was nearly as worrying as Moussa Diaby’s chance from the first leg. We can ask question marks from Jose Palomino on how he let Diaby get such a head start on his 2nd half chance, but we cannot fault Atalanta’s work marshalling the air.
Continue to Test Leverkusen’s Backline- While Atalanta was not able to get any good chances in the first half, La Dea continued to test the Leverkusen backline. The boys had success making headway into the box, but credit to Leverkusen’s defense as it was always able to recover nicely. Jeremie Boga did save his heroics for the end, smartly taking a slower and more fatigued Jonathan Tah one-on-one, and overwhelmingly coming out on the winning side.
Don’t Play for the Draw- The scoreline may have suggested Atalanta did, but La Dea was looking for a goal in the first half; it just didn’t happen. Fortunately a first half of aggression only required 45 minutes of comprehensive defending. If Atalanta sets up to defend for 90 minutes, its debatable if the score line is the same.
Atalanta Passione’s Match Ratings
Goalkeeper: 7.5 – Juan Musso stepped up big, stifling two clear chances from Moussa Diaby. Just to demonstrate how key is 2nd half stop was, according to Fotmob’s xG tracker, Diaby’s shot had a 94% chance of going in based on the shot placement and Diaby’s positioning on the pitch. Legendary save!
Defense: 7.5 – Demiral was immense, and his “Demiral Dive” is rapidly becoming one of the most exciting things to look for on the defensive end. Similarly Djimsiti and Palomino were very good, with the defense’s score being docked a bit only because of Palomino’s brain fart to let Diaby go free.
Midfield: 7 – What a difference it is when the double pivot does not include Matteo Pessina. Marten de Roon and Remo Freuler were their usual selves, creating a much more aggressive atmosphere in the middle of the pitch.
Wingbacks: 7 – Davide Zappacosta and Hans Hateboer may have stone boots sometimes, but it never has anything to do with their speed. Hateboer particularly was immense in defense, and both added just enough width to help keep Leverkusen honest.
Attack: 6.5 – Nothing clicked for a goal, but the first half work to keep the pressure on Leverkusen was vital. In addition, Muriel worked his butt off as a target man and may have had a few more clear cut chances on goal if Leverkusen didn’t have three defenders constantly draped over him.
Substitutes: 7.5 – Djimsiti came in admirably when he wasn’t ready, and of course Jeremie Boga putting the dagger in the game with one of Atalanta’s goals of the year.
Atalanta Passione Man of the Match- Merih Demiral
It was a toss-up between Juan Musso and Demiral, but Demiral’s assist put him ahead by a smidge. Kidding! But what an easiest assist that was to earn! It would be shorter to write a list of what Demiral did not do well on Thursday – bad aim on header from corner kick. That’s about it! His defense was pristine, and he really is a wall in the box when he wants to be. Thank you again Juventus!
Other Match Odds and Ends
FotMob’s xGoal- Leverkusen: 1.19 – Atalanta 0.89
Boga’s goal only had an xG of 0.10 but pristine placement made it basically a coin flip for Hradecky to stop.
Moussa Diaby’s fluffed chance had an xG of 0.50, and as mentioned above a 94% chance of converting. It is tough to come across better saves than that.
Hans Hateboer and Mitchel Bakker got to line up again for their round 2 bout. I may have missed it, but Thursday’s battle did not seem to be nearly as hostile as last week. Maybe they reconciled their differences over some stroopwafel?
Rafael Toloi went down very early with a very apparent hamstring pull. Its a concerning injury, and one that may have him out for an extended amount of time. Time for Scalvini to continue to step up as he’s done so far this year.
Merih Demiral has become sort of a household name for celebrating his tackles won. Oddly enough most of his epic tackles from earlier this year likely would have been called back for offsides had he not had any defensive chops. This may be the first time he got to properly celebrate a tackle that would not have been negated by a linesman’s flag.
Eight teams are left, and Atalanta only has to advance through four games to reach an ‘all bets are off’ final. La Dea has to have as good a chance as anybody, even with teams like Barcelona and RB Leipzig looming large.
Atalanta already made it past a huge test in Bayer Leverkusen, a squad that is equally or even more unpredictable to our beloved Dea can cause and succumb to havoc. Atalanta let its cool head prevail, and there should be nothing left in the competition that Atalanta hasn’t seen before.
Before thinking too far ahead to the quarterfinals, let’s all relish in a thoroughly enjoyable Thursday night campaign. Thursday football is tough, and while Atalanta’s league record has suffered a bit (possibly there’s a correlation), the excitement that has come during the middle of the week has made the uneven Serie A form worth it. Let’s keep it going, and try to pull off the improbable! As always, Forza Dea!!!
