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Tag: Atalanta

  • UCL: Mendy scores late in Madrid win over Atalanta

    UCL: Mendy scores late in Madrid win over Atalanta

    Ferland Mendy scored a stunning late winner as Real Madrid clinched a hard-working last-16 first-leg victory against 10-man Atalanta.

    Real looked like being left frustrated by a well-organised home side until Mendy curled in with four minutes left.

    Atalanta’s Remo Freuler was sent off after just 17 minutes for denying Mendy a clear goalscoring opportunity.

    The depleted hosts did not have a single shot on target and now must score in the return leg on 16 March.

    Real were without a number of key first-team players through injury including captain Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema, Eden Hazard and Dani Carvajal and it showed for almost the entire contest.

    With Atalanta sitting back after Freuler’s early red card for a cynical trip on Mendy, Zinedine Zidane’s side failed to create clear-cut chances.

    Isco, playing as the furthest man forward, saw a turn and shot deflect wide, while Marco Asensio’s header and free-kick were comfortable for Pierluigi Gollini to deal with.

    But with time running out, full-back Mendy earned his side a priceless away goal with a sublime curling effort from 25 yards to put Real in charge of the tie.

    Atalanta will feel disappointed by conceding so late having displayed a solid defensive showing but remain without a victory at home in the Champions League this term.

    Zidane, meanwhile, will be eyeing a 13th knockout-tie triumph from 14 attempts after Real progressed from the group stages for a record 24th consecutive campaign.

    BBC

  • UCL: We can beat Real Madrid – Atalanta attacker

    UCL: We can beat Real Madrid – Atalanta attacker

    Atalanta attacker Luis Muriel is sure of victory in tonight’s Champions League clash against La Liga side Real Madrid.

    The first leg encounter kicks off on Wednesday at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo.

    “Playing against Real Madrid is always prestigious and I am enjoying this moment,” declared Muriel.

    “The only way to put in a great performance is to give it everything we’ve got. We beat Sevilla 3-2 at home by playing a great game in a moment when they were in excellent shape.

    “If we give our all and believe in ourselves and our own characteristics, we can beat anyone. If we play the way we know how, then we can compete at the highest levels.”

    He added: “Their history is clear, when they don’t play well in La Liga, that’s when they step up and pull something out of the hat in the Champions League.”

  • Salah return to Liverpool, available for Atalanta clash

    Salah return to Liverpool, available for Atalanta clash

    Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah is back in training and could face Atalanta in the Champions League on Wednesday.

    The 28-year-old missed Sunday’s 3-0 win over Leicester after testing positive for coronavirus while on international duty with Egypt.

    But he has since tested negative and took part in training on Monday.

    Liverpool have a 100% record in this season’s Champions League and will reach the last 16 if they beat their Serie A opponents.

  • Jota nets hat-trick as Liverpool thrash Atalanta

    Jota nets hat-trick as Liverpool thrash Atalanta

    Striker Diogo Jota netted his first hat-trick for Liverpool as they thrashed Atalanta 5-0 on Tuesday in a blistering performance.

    The victory ensured that Liverpool went five points clear at the top of their UEFA Champions League Group D after three straight wins.

    Jota’s treble continued his scintillating start to his Liverpool career.

    Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane also got on the scoresheet in a superb display from Juergen Klopp’s English Premier League (EPL) champions.

    Jota wasted an early chance before giving his side the lead in the 16th minute.

    He latched on to a pass from Trent Alexander-Arnold, holding off Jose Luis Palomino before delicately flicking the ball past Marco Sportiello.

    The Portugal forward, who arrived from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a reported fee of 41 million pounds (54 million dollars) in September, made it 2-0 in the 33rd minute.

    This was after he controlled a raking pass from Joe Gomez with his left foot before firing home with his right.

    With the home side reeling, Salah scored a super solo goal two minutes into the second half.

    He collected a clearance from Andy Robertson and running from the halfway line before curling the ball in at the far post.

    Minutes later it was Mane’s turn to make it 4-0 with a sublime chipped finish.

    Jota then completed his hat-trick with another coolly-taken effort in the 55th minute for his seventh goal in his first 10 appearances for Liverpool.

    Atalanta’s best chances on the night fell to Duvan Zapata, who clipped the underside of the crossbar with a superb curling strike.

    He twice tested Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson with stinging shots and also had a stoppage-time effort ruled out for offside.

    Salah almost scored a sixth for Liverpool in the 83rd minute.

    Once again he ran half the length of the pitch after an Atalanta corner was cleared, but this time his shot was steered out for a corner by Sportiello.

    The victory puts Liverpool top of the group with nine points after three games, having conceded no goals.

    Ajax Amsterdam are second on four points and ahead of Atalanta on goal difference after a 2-1 win away to Danish side FC Midtjylland.

  • UCL: PSG progress to semi-finals after two late goals

    UCL: PSG progress to semi-finals after two late goals

    Paris St-Germain scored twice in stoppage-time to seal an incredible comeback against Atalanta and reach the Champions League semi-finals for the first time in 25 years.

    A night of frustration for PSG forward Neymar looked set to ensure more continental disappointment for the French champions as Atalanta led through Mario Pasalic.

    But Neymar laid on a 90th-minute equaliser for Marquinhos and substitute Kylian Mbappe teed up former Stoke striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting to slide in the winner.

    PSG will now face either RB Leipzig or Atletico Madrid in the first semi-final next Tuesday night.

  • Ronaldo rescues Juventus in ‘robbery’ against Atalanta

    Ronaldo rescues Juventus in ‘robbery’ against Atalanta

    Cristiano Ronaldo converted two penalty kicks, both awarded for handballs and the second in the last minute on Saturday, as Serie A leaders Juventus twice hit back to draw 2-2 with Atalanta.

    The draw helped the defending champions to move closer to a ninth successive Serie A title.

    The Portuguese forward took his league tally to 28 goals this season as Juventus went eight points clear of second-placed Lazio with six matches to play.

    Atalanta are a further point back in third after being denied a tenth successive league win.

    Both handballs were clearly accidental but, under the current rules, referee Piero Giacomelli had no option but to award the penalty kicks.

    However, it was rough justice on Atalanta.

    The team, which leads Serie A in scoring, would have climbed into second place and cut the gap between themselves and Juventus to six points if they had won.

    Juventus, humbled 4-2 at AC Milan on Tuesday, dropped Miralem Pjanic but were quickly forced onto the back foot by a typically audacious Atalanta side.

    Duvan Zapata put the visitors ahead in the 16th minute.

    An intricate exchange of passes with Alejandro Gomez opened up the Juventus defence before the Colombian slotted his shot past Wojciech Szczesny.

    The visitors continued to pen Juventus into their half, enjoying 58 percent possession and five shots to the home team’s one before half-time.

    They however went on to fall foul of the handball rule 10 minutes after the break.

    Paulo Dybala fired a cross against Marten de Roon’s elbow.

    Although it was at point-blank range and the Dutchman’s arm was close to his chest, the referee immediately pointed to the penalty kick spot.

    Ronaldo smashed home the penalty kick, scoring for the sixth game in a row.

    The game opened up, with Atalanta regaining the lead in the 81st minute when Luis Muriel sent a pass across the face of the penalty area to Ruslan Malinovskyi.

    He took it in his stride before firing a right foot shot past Szczesny.

    But lightning struck a second time for Atalanta when Gonzalo Higuain got his foot to a corner kick and deflected the ball onto Muriel’s hand.

    The Colombian did not have time to get his hand out of the way but, as it was outstretched, the penalty kick had to be given and Ronaldo converted in the 90th minute.

  • Serie A: Atalanta midfielder dies aged 19

    Serie A: Atalanta midfielder dies aged 19

    Atalanta midfielder Andrea Rinaldi has died aged 19 after suffering a brain aneurysm on Friday while training at home during the coronavirus lockdown.

    Rinaldi was part of the youth system at Atalanta and had been on loan at Serie D side Legnano this season.

    “Always available and positive, he knew how to make himself well-liked by everyone,” said an Atalanta statement.

    Legnano described Rinaldi’s death as “a sudden and shocking tragedy, impossible even to imagine”.

    Legnano’s statement, which confirmed the cause of death, added: “Andrea fought for three days after the illness that hit him. Unfortunately there was nothing to do.”

    Italian media reported that Rinaldi died at hospital in Varese on Monday morning.

    Rinaldi had been at Serie A side Atalanta since the age of 13, winning the Under-17 league title and Super Cup in 2016.

    He previously had loans spells at Imolese and Mezzolara and had made 23 appearances for Legnano this season, scoring one goal.

     

  • Atalanta cruise to Champions League quarter-finals

    Atalanta cruise to Champions League quarter-finals

    Atalanta eased into the Champions League quarter-finals as Josip Ilicic hit four goals against Valencia, in the first match of the competition to be played behind closed doors because of the coronavirus outbreak.

    The Italians arrived in Spain with a commanding 4-1 lead from the first leg of their last-16 tie and quickly added to their advantage inside an eerie Mestalla Stadium.

    With the chants of a large gathering of home supporters outside the ground clearly audible, Slovenia forward Ilicic converted a third-minute penalty for the Serie A side after he had been fouled by Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby.

    And while Kevin Gameiro capitalised on a defensive mix-up to tap in an equaliser for the hosts, Diakhaby’s handball allowed Ilicic to score his second spot-kick of the evening to put the visitors 6-2 up on aggregate.

    A second Gameiro goal, this time from a close-range header, levelled the score on the night before Ferran Torres’ lobbed effort put the La Liga side in front.

    However, Ilicic’s rasping left-foot drive from 20 yards restored Atalanta’s three-goal aggregate lead as he became the first Slovenian player to score a Champions League hat-trick.

    Ilicic’s fourth, a left-foot effort into the top left corner, rounded off an 8-4 aggregate win on a fine evening for Gian Piero Gasperini’s side, who have now scored 28 goals in their last seven games and become the competition’s first debutants to reach the last eight since Leicester City in 2016-17.

    BBC

  • Serie A: Juve makes first 2020 signing

    Serie A: Juve makes first 2020 signing

    Juventus have signed Sweden midfielder Dejan Kulusevski from Atalanta in a 35m euro (£29.7m) deal.

    The 19-year-old has signed a four-and-a-half year contract with the Serie A side but will return on loan to Parma until the end of the season.

    Kulusevski signed a one-year loan deal with Parma in July 2019 and has scored four goals in 17 appearances.

    He made his senior international debut for Sweden in November in a Euro 2020 qualifying win over the Faroe Islands.

    Kulusevski’s fee may rise to 44m euros (£37m) depending on conditions being met.

  • Serie A: AC Milan suffer heaviest defeat since 1998

    AC Milan suffered their heaviest defeat for more than 21 years as they were thrashed 5-0 by Atalanta in Serie A.

    Stefano Pioli’s side are 10th in the table and could go into Christmas in the bottom half if Sassuolo or Bologna win later on Sunday.

    Alejandro Gomez scored a stunning opener, nutmegging Andrea Conti before firing home, and Atalanta’s final three goals came in the last half hour.

    Mario Pasalic scored and Josip Ilicic netted twice before Luis Muriel struck.

    Atalanta, who are in the Champions League knockout stages, rise to fifth in the table.

    Milan had not lost by five goals in any competition since being beaten 5-0 by Roma in May 1998.

    Pioli, the club’s third manager of 2019, said: “This cannot be the real Milan.

    “[We] approached the match in the wrong way and you just can’t afford to do that against this team.

    “Today’s performance was seriously insufficient. I expected a reaction from us in the second half but it didn’t come. In fact, we were even worse.”