I’m not gonna lie, I’ve only been following the club for a year, but they’ve captivated me like no other club in any other sport has done before. Beyond my love for Colombian footballers, I don’t have a clear and concise answer why it is; but, here all do my best to convince you why you MUST follow Serie A’s most exciting football club.
- Non-stop attacking: One word to describe Atalanta is relentless. None of that boring Mourinho defensive masterclass soccer. In 2019/2020 alone they put up 7 goals on three different occasions (and 6 also), and don’t let up even when a victory is all but guaranteed. They know no other way of playing, evidenced by their 5-1 drubbing against Manchester City in the Champion’s League. While they could’ve sat back and taken a respectable 2-0 loss, they kept to their high risk philosophy. And while sometimes it doesn’t work, most of the time it yields excellent dividends.
- A True Global Enterprise: Talk about diversity, check out these stats.
– 2 Argentinians
– 1 Brazilian/Italian
– 2 Colombians
– 1 Albanian
– 1 Slovenian
– 2 Croatians
– 3 Dutchmen
– 1 Russian
– 1 German
– 1 Ukrainian
– 1 Swiss
– 1 Dane
– 1 Turk
– 7 Italians
I would put money on it that they have the most diverse team in all of Serie A (and potentially in the top 5 Leagues?!?) There is a lot of talk these days that lax rules on foreign players hinders League development, and hamper’s the development of National youth. I beg to differ. Competition should make those who truly want to succeed rise to challenge, and do their best to standout in a growing pool of players. In addition, soccer styles from different sporting cultures helps to spread and share ideas, and develop fresh tactical philosophies. (If anyone should know about antiquated football philosophy it would be Italy). Atalanta embodies what has allowed the best football nations to flourish and outpace their rivals, and has so far paid dividends in their Serie A escapades. - Classic Underdog Story: Historically Atalanta has previously bounced back and forth between Serie A and Serie B, even as recently as 2011, in which they won the Serie B title. They’ve only won the Coppa Italia once all the way back in 1963, and they’ve NEVER won a Scudetto. As a regional club hailing from Bergamo, this seems like the likely life of a club on a minimal budget. But look at what they’ve accomplished since reaching Serie A again-
2011-2012: 12th
2012-2013: 15th
2013-2014: 11th
2014-2015: 17th
2015-2016: 13th
2016-2017: 4th
2017-2018: 7th
2018-2019: 3rd
2019-2020: 3rd
After suffering in mid-table purgatory for 5 years, they’ve been on a tear ever since (on a budget no-less, that should ideally keep them mid-table). Gian Piero Gasperini coming to the club in 2016 has ascended them to Serie A’s top spots, all with a budget that suggests they should stay mid-table. They are truly an anomoly to the classic soccer mantra that the top budgets bring the most success. As of September 19th (in 2019) their wage bill is 13th in the league at 36M Euros (now they’ve moved all the way to 11th with 42M Euros on the books), as they go nose to nose with Juventus, Inter, and Roma with wages that are at least triple of theirs. They’ve broken the budget blueprint through wily signings, staying true to their mission, and not gambling on “marquee” signings. - The Youth System: Widely regarded as one of the best youth system’s in Italy, Atalanta’s Primavera squad is an absolute factory of talent to the rest of Italian football. They have like 50 players out on loan across Italy, and have developed a slew of players playing huge roles for their Serie A clubs (not limited to Kessie, Bastoni, and Bonaventura). If I may make a quick baseball analogy: in today’s MLB, it is impossible to be successfully without instilling a culture throughout your entire organization. From the coaches, to the players, to the developmental staff, to the analysts, in modern MLB, you CANNOT be successful without championing development from top to bottom.
Atalanta seems to have figured this out for themselves, by instilling a culture that is unique to them, and one that allows the whole organization to rally around it. They tend to only recruit from Lombardia; thus their youth will be familiar with the “Atalanta Way,” whatever it may happen to be. And ultimately it creates assets for the club. Right now these assets are being cashed in to other clubs, but since the whole organization is set up correctly, these assets could easily as well stay with the club, should the organization choose to do so.
So if you’re looking to start following Serie A more closely, or are looking for a Champion’s League darkhorse, I implore you to look no further than Atalanta from tiny Bergamo. They’re thrilling to watch, and they’ve connected sport to business better than any club I can think of without a true global reach. Forza Atalanta, and here’s to continued success not just in Italy, but in Europe as well!!