JAKARTA – Atalanta failed to get close to AS Roma after drawing 2-2 against Verona in the Italian Serie A match at Stadio Gewiss, Tuesday, April 16 2024 early morning WIB.
Atalanta hopes to continue the brilliant trend like when they beat Liverpool 3-0 in the Europa League match. Atalanta also looked confident when they hosted lowly team Verona.
This hope almost came true because La Dea was already two goals ahead. However, they failed to maintain that advantage. Verona was able to catch up and close the match with a draw.
This additional point is clearly beyond Atalanta’s target. The reason is, they failed to close the points gap with the teams above them.
Atalanta’s position has not changed because they remain in sixth place with points. Four points adrift of Roma who are in fifth position.
Meanwhile, Bologna, who is in the Champions League zone and is ranked fourth, has 59 points.
Meanwhile, Verona got a very valuable point. They can improve their position even though they are still struggling at the bottom of the board.
Now, Verona has risen to 15th place with 28 points. Their points tally is the same as Udinese and Empoli. Only, Verona has the best goal difference.
However, Verona’s position is still uncomfortable because they are only one point ahead of Frosinone who is ranked 18th or the top position of the teams in the relegation zone.
In that match, Atalanta actually made a very good start. They were already ahead when Gianluca Scamacca scored a goal in the 13th minute.
It started with midfielder Teun Koopmeiners who managed to grab the ball and then gave it to Scamacca. The Italian national team striker completed this opportunity with a volley that found the back of Verona’s goal.
Winning 1-0 made Gian Piero Gasperini’s troops even more enthusiastic about pressing their opponents. With their offensive game, they excel in possession of the ball.
As a result, Atalanta’s attack increased their lead. This time, Brazilian midfielder Ederson scored the goal in the 18th minute. Receiving the ball from Scamacca, he faced goalkeeper Lorenzo Montipo one on one. Ederson also succeeded in beating Montipo.
The score changed 2-0 to Atalanta. No more goals were scored even though Atalanta had several opportunities. It was recorded that Koopmeiners, Charles De Ketelaere and Mario Pasalic almost increased their lead.
However, everyone failed to convert any opportunities and Atalanta closed the first half with a two-goal lead.
In the second half, the situation reversed. Verona took the initiative to attack. On the other hand, Atalanta’s performance has decreased.
Verona defender Juan Cabal forced goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi into a brilliant save in the opening minutes. However, he failed to stop Darko Lazovic’s kick in the 56th minute.
Through a counter-attack, midfielder Tijjani Noslin then passed the ball to Lazovic. He also fired a hard kick that went through defender Rafael Toloi’s legs and made goalkeeper Carnesecchi take a wrong step.
This goal made the Verona players even more enthusiastic about catching up on the goals they missed. The result was four minutes later, Verona managed to equalize the score.
This time it was Noslin who scored the goal after receiving an assist from Fabien Centonze. The score changed to 2-2 and lasted until the end of the match.