Football Season Guide

The past season undoubtedly was one of the best Atalanta ever had, as they managed to finish 4th, thus qualifying again for Champions League football, and, after losing their umpteenth Coppa Italia final, they actually won their first European competition, the Europa League, beating Bayer Leverkusen. Truth be said, their start to the season had been rather irregular but things changed at the beginning of December, when they raised their rhythm and pulled out an impressive array of wins. Afterwards, they occasionally slipped again, and this cost them the Coppa Italia at the hands of Juventus and the third place, following an unexpected defeat to Fiorentina in the very last game of the campaign. Despite receiving offers by other Italian and European big clubs, coach Gian Piero Gasperini decided to continue his job in Bergamo, for the 9th season in a row. Atalanta owners are very ambitious, just like their coach, and they decided to keep rejuvenating and strengthening the squad in order to be competitive for both the Scudetto and the renewed Champions League. Thus, they invested large amounts of cash acquiring 22-year-old De Ketelaere permanently. He scored 14 goals and served 11 assists overall and is set to be given always more importance in the team. Then, they hired centre-back Godfrey, who is coming from a troubled season at Everton and is expected to provide depth in an area that saw Palomino leaving and that was plagued by injuries last campaign, with Scalvini still missing for some time. Sulemana, on the other hand, after making his name at Cagliari, should represent a valid back-up for the midfield where De Roon is not any younger and Adopo left without leaving a mark. Last but not least, with Miranchuk gone, Atalanta signed attacking midfielder Zaniolo, on loan from Galatasaray: at 25, he had an inconsistent season in Turkey and he represents a bit of a gamble for Gasperini, who could also try him as a striker as an alternative to Retegui, with Scamacca out long-term.