Everyone knows what happens when Atalanta wears the good luck charm hot salmon kit… points! Just to make sure Gian Piero Gasperini also donned two-thirds of a Canadian Tuxedo; and with all the rabbit’s ears, lucky arrowheads, and the lack of a number 13 on the pitch Atalanta earned a vital three points against a pesky Spezia side. Following the true spirit of the season, Atalanta guaranteed the visiting tifosi that nothing was going to be easy with proceedings. An early Luis Muriel goal made it seem like La Dea were in for a comfortable stroll through Liguria. But, some suicidal defending by La Dea’s backline permitted Daniele Verde to waltz through uncontested on goal.
One momentary lapse of judgement is nothing new for Atalanta this year, and with the match tied at one going into halftime, it felt like just another one of those games for Atalanta. Yet in an encouraging reversal of fortunes, Atalanta came out poised and dare I say clinical in the second half. Despite Spezia’s efforts to make the game difficult and uncomfortable, Atalanta’s quality ultimately did shine through. The Koopmeiners long-ball finally made its way back into the foray, deftly setting up a Merih Demiral to Berat Djimsiti goal connection. If only hockey assists were given in calcio – Koopmeiners’s long ball into the box was a piece of set piece magic that Atalanta has been missing all year. And with the match seemingly in hand, Mario Pasalic with his stone-cold finishing guaranteed Spezia was dusted – neatly placing a onetime shot right off the post for his fourth goal in four matches.
This had all the makings of a game that Atalanta would struggle to hold out and win. Converting early was a nice change of pace. However, the middle third of the match was uncomfortable, but Gasperini in all his madness effectively used his substitutes for the benefit of the team – and it likely won La Dea the match. Ruslan Malinovskyi and Remo Freuler, while both played well, were on thin ice both through card accumulation. So in steps Jeremie Boga and Hans Hateboer, one offering flair on offense, the other shoring up the defense through counterattack prevention. Boga was inches away from his first goal in Serie A with Atalanta, but the insertion of both aforementioned markedly shifted the match back in Atalanta’s favor; eventually unlocking Spezia’s defense.
Its an encouraging win for La Dea going into next week’s mammoth matchup against Milan, and should instill confidence in some players that had been scuffling (mainly Koopmeiners, Djimsiti, and Boga). More importantly for Atalanta’s own aspirations, it keeps La Dea in punching distance of 5th place – also putting immense pressure on both Fiorentina and Roma to get something out of their Monday matchup.
Atalanta Passione’s Match Ratings
Goalkeeper: 6.5 – Juan Musso had little chance on Verde’s goal (although he was close!), but it seems he recently has been much more assertive in manning his box on long balls and crosses. Today was no different.
Defense: 7 – The shocking defending that led to Verde’s goal cannot be ignored. However, the defense played well for the rest of the match, and Djimsiti’s go-ahead goal was obviously vital.
Wingbacks: 6.5 – A steady performance from the duo. Joakim Maehle looks a bit rusty due to his minimal match time, but he at least offers something different offensively down the flank.
Midfield: 7 – Freuler scrapped well with primadonna extraordinaire Giulio Maggiore, but this was Koopmeiners’s game. It was good of him to finally remind everyone how deadly his left foot can be from anywhere on the pitch.
Attack: 7 – An efficient match from the attack. Pasalic and Muriel’s goals were nice, and even Malinovskyi did better to hold onto the ball during build-ups.
Substitutes: 7 – The rare assist from Demiral matched the turn of the tide play from both Boga and Hateboer.
Atalanta Passione Man of the Match – Teun Koopmeiners
Koopmeiners brought out all the bells and whistles for this match. Playing on both the left and right side of the defense, he was still able to conduct offense from nearly any spot on the pitch. The Dutchman pinged 12 accurate longballs (out of 15 chances!), and its just a matter of time before him and Jeremie Boga get on the same page to set up a perfect counterattack goal.
Other Match Odds and Ends
-Spezia xG: 1.13 – Atalanta xG: 1.84 – The xG differential gap closed a bit thanks to Emmanuel Gyasi’s epic bottle job on a near point blank shot (0.43 xG). However, had this shot gone in, there would have been an incredibly strong case to review the goal for a handball that occurred during the buildup.
-Again Mario Pasalic continues to demonstrate his brilliant finishing. Before the shot attempt, his goal had a 10% chance of being converted, but his pristine finishing elevated that up to a 69% chance. Honestly it feels like the post shot xG should be higher. There was no way that Ivan Provedel is getting to a ball that just kisses the post like that.
-Berat Djimsiti’s goal makes him the 20th player to score for La Dea in Serie A this year. Further analysis would be necessary to see if this goal distribution among players leads the league, but it certainly has to be one of the highest. For comparison, AC Milan has had 16 different goal scorers this year.
-Spezia (but technically Atalanta) wingback Arkadiusz Reca had some nice marauds down the wing in his 45 minutes on the pitch. Its still puzzling how he has never gotten one minute in an Atalanta shirt. Maybe his level is just midtable Serie A player, but it really does feel like he has the skillset to be effective in a more robust tactical setup.
Two games left to go with six vital points up for grabs. But rather than look ahead, let’s take a step back and recognize a good performance that could have gone haywire in a much similar way to last Monday. There’s still fight left in the boys, and everyone wants to make good on a season that has been less than ideal. But we keep fighting everyday, and normally when you fight and believe – pair that with talent and good things can still happen! As always, Forza Dea!!!
