It feels weird calling a draw a good result, but Atalanta clawed its way back down two goals in the second half to gain an all important point against Ajax. Two excellent goals from Duvan Zapata saved a sloppy first half, and now has Atalanta sitting comfortable at 2nd in the group before back to back fixtures against the Liverpool juggernaut. Even though it feels good to walk away with a point, it’s very easy to still think what could have been. Gasperini’s questionable choice to start a clearly off-form Ilicic epitomized the sloppy and lackluster play demonstrated in the first half. A more lively Muriel or even Malinovskyi getting the nod could have provided much more offensive fireworks, and perhaps even a victory and 3 points. Hindsight is always 20-20, so given the circumstances let’s use the momentum built in the 2nd half to get back on form in Serie A, and put a scare into Liverpool.
Zapata was immense for La Dea, so let’s get him the quick blurb he deserves. Beyond the 2 goals, he was potent in every aspect of his game. His hold-up play was great, he flew past the central defenders on multiple occasions to work into the channels, and Ajax really had no answer for him. I only wish he had a better (or pacier) link-up partner up front. There were numerous occasions where Zapata had the ball in some ideal crossing positions with no one in the box to receive the ball. Muriel or even Pasalic up front could have had him tallying an assist or two, beyond just the goals. All in all, great performance from Duvan, and let’s hope the momentum carries into his Serie A campaign where he’s had a slightly sluggish start.
Given that the game ended in the draw, props to Ajax are due. While their goals weren’t the prettiest, they exuded confidence and put a bunch of pressure on the back three (Djimsiti and Romero played extremely well). Perhaps most importantly, they exploited the middle of the pitch quite frequently and made La Dea realize how crucial the de Roon and Freuler pairing is. With de Roon out for several weeks, Gasperini has to get creative with how he handles the double pivot, especially in matches against European giants Liverpool and Inter. Atalanta cannot afford to leave the middle of the pitch so open. To offset this, it felt like Romero was moving higher and higher up the pitch just to cover open areas (a dangerous proposition if runners get in behind him). As much as I want Pasalic to succeed, the double pivot is not his forte. But we may not have any other choice at this point. Malinovskyi cannot play the double pivot, Pessina has only played 20 minutes this year, and Tameze is off playing with Verona (sad face). Pasalic at least looked lively today, maybe because he was frequently being caught out of position, but we may just have to live and die with Mario for the next month. For our sake let’s hope his positioning and decision making improves.
Now sitting pretty in 2nd place, Atalanta has a brutal test coming up with back to back games against Liverpool. Fortunately with the first match being at home Atalanta has a chance to put the Reds on their heels before heading off for the return fixture at Anfield. Grabbing at least a point from one of these matches is essential. Assuming Ajax takes care of business and beats FCM twice, they’ll be sitting at 7 points going into the last two matches. At least 1 point puts Atalanta at 5 total, and then the opportunity to reach 8 points (after La Dea’s 2nd match against FCM) and 2nd place in the group (assuming Liverpool beats Ajax). Then a draw against Ajax in the final match can secure Atalanta passage to the knockout phase without having to worry about tie breakers, which would be sorely against Atalanta if both Ajax and Atalanta were to tie in the final match (they’d have to score at least two away goals, entirely possible in hindsight but don’t want to leave it to chance).
All in all, I’m happy with the result; there’s always a moral victory coming back from 2 goals down. While a victory would have been nice, a point and lessons learned (shore up the middle, pair Zapata with some additional pace), will prove vital going into the Liverpool matches. I still think Gosens will be the main man coming up, and will need to take Alexander-Arnold to school for any La Dea success. So let’s hope he shakes off his average performance and gifted penalty, and has his game face on for next week. We’re still in the driver’s seat, so let’s keep it that way. As always, Forza La Dea!
