Last Saturday’s clash at the Gewiss Stadium of Bergamo between Atalanta and Milan, which has taken place for the 15th matchday of the 2023/2024 Serie A on December 9th, 2023, has offered many opportunities to move on, after the bitter defeat against Torino FC.
Most of these opportunities were grabbed by the Dea who has beaten the Rossoneri Devils for 3-2 in a 98 minutes thrilling match. The enthusiasm was great and the emotions very strong.
In memory of Sebastiano Capelli
Emotion stood when the Curva Nord displayed the long banner dedicated to Sebastiano Capelli, a 23-year-old Atalanta fan from Petosino, a hamlet of Sorisole (BG), who was snatched from life and passed away on Sunday 3rd December due to a serious illness, after 50 days of fighting. Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio and Cristian Raimondi, the latter former Dea player and Gasperini’s collaborator, had also dedicated profound messages on social media to the young man in recent days.
All these demonstrations of affection are marvellous: they allow the people who sadly passed away to live on through and inside us, forever, even during the matches.
Photo by courtesy of Barbara
The match
Atalanta could have already taken the lead in the 8th minute when Charles De Ketelaere, a few steps away from the goal, sent the ball high, in despair. The criticisms I have read against the Belgian national are unfortunate: even great professionals like De Ketelaere make mistakes, but they come out with class. Charles is in fact the goal assist provider for Lookman’s 2-1 (and not only): it is an important goal because Milan’s equalizer scored by Giroud in the first half’s injury time had been a bit bitter. However, the equalizer had not certainly curbed the determination that has always characterized Atalanta and her fans, the ones who love the squad and who remain with the Dea until the end, even when she loses.
Bitter because our Dea had made the first half her own, scoring in the 38th minute with Lookman, the provider of the header assist to De Ketelaere in the 8th minute, but experiencing the equalizer after a push from Musah on Lookman himself before Milan’s goal. VAR was unable to intervene in this case: the corner kick, which then led to Giroud’s header and goal, constitutes a new match action. The push happened earlier.
These are technicalities that perhaps should be reformed.
After the draw, it was important to free the mind from negative thoughts and do a reset to continue making the victory against Milan possible.
In the second half, it was Lookman again who scored the 2-1 in the 55th minute.
Milan equalized in the 80th minute with Pulisic, but it was Muriel’s brilliant heel in the 95th minute that gave our Dea the 3 well-deserved points.
A crazy goal by Muriel, a great Lookman, but Miranchuk’s performance could be evaluated with an 8 out of 10. Although Aleksey substituted the Nigerian in the 82nd minute, Miranchuk has played a what a game: first he causes Calabria’s sending off for a double yellow card in the 93rd minute and then provides the assist to Muriel for the final 3-2. This happens within minutes.
Abandon all hope, ye who enter at the Gewiss Stadium and the 3 points won by Atalanta in the evening of December 9th, 2023, are significant because they allow our Dea to get closer to the Champions League places.
This evening there was not only a great show from the whole team, but, with the first head-to-head won by our Dea, a greater and more important awareness as well: the step towards a further growth has taken place.
