Four days before they travel to face Hapoel Tel Aviv in the second leg of their Conference League play-off, Atalanta opened their Serie A season with a 2-1 win over Sassuolo at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo, handing new head coach Maurizio Sarri his first competitive victory in charge.
Giacomo Raspadori put the hosts ahead inside six minutes with a finish off the underside of the crossbar, before Sassuolo defender Cas Odenthal levelled just after the hour. Substitute Nikola Krstović, signed from Lecce for around €25 million last summer, restored Atalanta's lead in the 65th minute to settle the contest.
Sarri, who took over at Atalanta this summer, had endured a bumpy pre-season by his own admission, and the win was described in the Italian press as the first sign of his squad adapting to his methods after early tactical struggles. Sassuolo, freshly promoted and missing several players rested after a Coppa Italia win over Cesena under coach Alberto Aquilani, gave Atalanta problems for long spells before suffering their first defeat of the new campaign.
As ONE noted in its report, the victory carries extra significance beyond the three points: it arrives days before Atalanta renew their Conference League play-off tie with Hapoel Tel Aviv, hoping to shake off a frustrating opening leg in which the Italian side were held scoreless.
Atalanta and Hapoel drew 0-0 in Bergamo on August 20, a result that raised eyebrows in Italy given Atalanta's standing as one of the strongest sides left in the Conference League draw, and left the tie finely poised going into the return fixture.
That second leg is scheduled for Thursday, August 27, at the DVTK Stadium in Miskolc, Hungary, rather than in Israel, with Hapoel — like other Israeli clubs in continental competition — hosting its "home" European fixtures abroad. The winner over the two legs advances to the Conference League's league phase.
For Hapoel, holding a club of Atalanta's stature scoreless on the road already ranks among the Tel Aviv side's better European nights in years, and they will fancy their chances of completing the job on a pitch of their own choosing next week.
Sarri's side, though, now arrive with fresh momentum and proven firepower in Raspadori and Krstović — a reminder of the quality Hapoel's defense will need to contain if the Israeli champions are to reach the Conference League league phase.
