Surely the story of the season in Serie A was Atalanta's remarkable 4th place finish and ascent back into Europe after a 26 year absence. No one could have predicted that to be the outcome for the club over the summer. They sacked Edy Reja and replaced him with Gian Piero Gasperini who had proven himself to be a very able coach over the years but it looked like he'd bitten off more than he could chew in Bergamo. The early weeks of the season were dark times as Atalanta lost four of their first five league games and Gasperini was seemingly teetering on the edge. However, Atalanta were somehow able to turn the corner with a victory over Napoli perhaps being the catalyst for a sensational run of 9 wins and 1 draw from ten matches. They added the scalps of Inter and Roma along the way too. Even a difficult period around the turn of the year didn't deter them and they went on another seven match unbeaten run from the end of January to mid-March. Then came a disastrous result as they were annihilated 7-1 at Inter and many felt that would finally be where the wheels came off for La Dea but they showed the resilience of champions to go another ten games without defeat right until the end of the season to pinch 4th spot from Lazio on the final day. Astonishing! At the heart of everything was the dynamic Alejandro Gomez who got into double figures for both goals and assists. He was complemented by a raft of young talent such as the athletic and skillful Franck Kessie in midfield plus Mattia Caldara and Andrea Conti who provided 12 goals from defence. It was Gasperini who orchestrated it all though, once again showing his ability to nurture some of the best young talent. Unfortunately he has already lost Kessie to Milan and Caldara will return to parent club Juventus whilst there are doubts about Gomez's future too. It will be very difficult for Gasperini to repeat the heroics of this season but no one in Bergamo will ever forget it.
