Atalanta’s Summer Transfer Window Roundup

With deadline day sandwiched between a fury of matchday happenings, it wasn’t possible for me to realistically get my transfer roundup complete until this week. And in all honestly it is probably best that I did wait to put pen to paper (even though I never actually write any of this in ink!)

The best way to summarize Atalanta’s summer is undulating. With peaks and valleys, some of them steep, Atalanta fans were justly nervous about what type of team would find the pitch this autumn. But after all the dust has settled it is evident that Tony D’Amico and Lee Congerton have done a nice job retooling the squad and giving Gian Piero Gasperini a legitimate chance to spring back into European competition next season. Thus ending this undulating summer on a peak that hopefully turns into a high plateau.

A Tip of the Cap to Atalanta’s Transfer Record

One complaint that cannot be used against the upper management is penny pinching. In fact this was Atalanta’s most expensive transfer window of all time. It becomes more notable given that Atalanta cannot even rely on European football this year for some additional cash flow. Digging into the numbers, Atalanta splashed 108M euros, and in return only brought in 89M euros (thanks to the Cristian Romero deal).

That’s some serious cash to drop, but given Atalanta’s excellent transfer record in previous seasons – it hardly (if at all) puts Atalanta in any sort of future financial risk. I went back and looked at transfer cash flows since Gian Piero Gasperini took the helm in 2016/17, and the squad is still carrying a positive 177M euros positive transfer flow!

Good business in the past can permit calculated risks in the future, and I think we’re seeing a bit of that banked fortune being used this year. Even so, thanks to the Romero deal, Atalanta barely had to dip into its coffers, and could still be realizing positive cash for the next several seasons even if the Percassi’s didn’t sell another single player.

Noticeable Trends from the Transfer Window

Gian Piero Gasperini, never one for mincing his words, publicly came out and stated that he wasn’t completely happy with the squad he received this summer. Maybe its gamesmanship, actual frustration, or a bit of both. Regardless, looking at who the front office brought in, there are some noticeable and positive trends that now become a bit more apparent given Atalanta’s strategy in the season’s first five matches.

The Signings Are Suitable to a Counterattacking Scheme

Opposite of past seasons, Atalanta has been one of the most negative teams in the league when on offense. A possession rate of 43.6% is third worst in the league and a far cry from the 55.1% possession the squad earned last year. Additionally, Atalanta’s pass completed percentage has plummeted from 81% down to 75%.

If this isn’t enough evidence that the tactics have changed, the eye test can confirm as much. But Atalanta is definitely sitting deeper this year, and hoping to hit on the counter. Fortunately Atalanta is slowing ramping up the personnel needed for this system. In fact, Brandon Soppy, Ademola Lookman, and Rasmus Hojlund all connected for a lightning quick goal against Monza that Atalanta would have had no chance of converting last year. Even Merih Demiral has embraced the new defensive philosophy and has excelled nicely sitting further back and not being the aggressive center back we were so drawn to last season.

Demiral has looked great playing a more passive center back role

The Squad is Getting Younger

Last year Atalanta was one of the oldest teams in the division. Besides Josip Ilicic, no one player was egregiously getting up there in age, but the squad’s average age was worryingly trending towards that dangerous age of 30. In fact the weighted average age of the squad by the end of last season was 28.4 years. In contrast, through the first five matches this year, the squad’s average age is 22.9 years! That is an enormous youth injection, and an exciting one at that. All of Atalanta’s signings that came in are under 25 years, and when you add Caleb Okoli and Giorgio Scalvini to the rotation there certainly looks to be a plan in place for multiple seasons. Current performance is not necessarily unexpected, but it is certainly gravy considering all the youngsters may not hit peak form for a few years.

Analyzing the New Signings

For this segment we won’t dive into Jeremie Boga and Merih Demiral, focusing just on the four players wearing Atalanta blue and black for the first time.

Ederson – 23.1M Euros from Salernitana (23 years)

Personally the Brazilian is my favorite signing of the summer. With the departure of Remo Freuler, Ederson becomes an even more important staple to the Atalanta rotation, and he has already flashed nicely. After three matches, it is still difficult to determine how Ederson will be used or what his best position actually is. What is known; however, is his speed and directness either from attack or the midfield is a useful weapon to have in Atalanta’s new counterattacking scheme.

Ademola Lookman – 10M Euros from RB Leipzig (24 years)

Atalanta’s plunge into the English football talent pool has been successful so far. With a goal and an assist (plus a brilliantly played own goal creation), Lookman combines technicality, directness, and speed, that blends nicely with the new counter attacking style being employed by Gasperini. Besides his offensive weapons, Lookman also puts in a nice shift defensively, and still looks to have the Leipzig heavy press mantra branded into his brain.

Brandon Soppy – 10M Euros from Udinese (20 years)

The Frenchman and in-house rapper looked to be a move for the future, but has flashed so nicely in his first three matches that he is making strong arguments to be a starter. He’s played well on both the left and right wings, giving Gasperini even more flexibility to mix and match his wingback pairings. Unlike some of his other teammates on the wings his penchant to get forward overrides other decisions he could potentially make on the field. Such aggression could come with risk, but it sure beats the classing wingback cutback and back pass we have grown accustomed to.

Rasmus Hojlund – 18.7M Euros from Sturm Graz (19 years)

Talk about being thrown into the storm (from the Sturm!). If Soppy was a move for the future, than Hojlund was one for the deep future. But thanks to the injury frailties of Atalanta’s frontline (age and injury!) the strapping Danish teenager has become a needed piece in the counterattack setup. His touch and buildup play is still obviously raw for a youngster that just hasn’t got the reps, but he does has a nose for goal! His finish against Monza was a classic striker’s finish, and if he continues to develop nicely, he could be an absolute force for Atalanta with his most optimistic outcome being Dusan Vlahovic or, shudder, even Erling Haaland.

Overall Transfer Grade: 7/10 – A Satisfying Window

The signings have already shown that D’Amico and Congerton spotted good players that can make both immediate and long lasting impacts with the club. It cannot be overlooked that inking Demiral permanently is also a huge bolster for the defense that is without Jose Luis Palomino for the year and Berat Djimsiti for the next few months.

However, with the good comes the bad. Losing Remo Freuler for 10M euros stings both financially, but more importantly from a morale standpoint. The durable ironman was often the pulse for Atalanta, and losing one of its most important players of the last half decade is unfortunate.

Beyond the Freuler deal, additional deals that did not get done may loom large. Having Jeremie Boga on the books for 24M euros is concerning and may turn more bitter given his position on the depth chart. There looked to be a deal in place with Leicester City, but the inability to carry that deal over the line is a financial red mark that will be sitting on the books for some time. Unless Boga completes a huge turnaround in performance!

Additionally, Hans Hateboer looked destined for a move to either the Premier League or even the Bundesliga. By my estimation, he is now 5th out of 5th on the depth chart for wingbacks and doesn’t have flexibility to play on the wing. There’s rumblings that the failure to sell Hateboer prevented Atalanta from bringing in Borna Sosa – who could’ve been lethal as a counterattacking fullback with a vicious cross.

But when all is said and done the work that Tony D’Amico and Lee Congerton has to be applauded. No transfer window can be perfect, and the new duo did a remarkable job to retool a team while getting younger. If the first five matches are any indication on what’s to come from this new crop, this rating has a chance to go even higher (its a bit unfair to give a grade after a week). So let’s hope that I was a bit premature in my rating – and by the winter break or the end of the season, we can reconvene and bump up this rating even higher! But until that time, let’s keep playing good football, and as always Forza Dea!!!

Nick