A return to winning ways after three straight losses was a relief for Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini and big boost in their race to qualify for next season’s Champions League via a top four finish in Serie A.
Sunday’s 2-0 win over fifth-placed Bologna saw Atalanta climb to third, two points ahead of fourth-placed Juventus, with six matches left in the campaign.
“When you win games of this calibre, it feels like it is worth double for the table,” Gasperini told DAZN.
“We are satisfied… when you score that early, it puts you in a position to control the match.”
Gasperini praised striker Mateo Retegui, who scored three minutes into the game and assisted in Mario Pasalic’s goal to steer Atalanta to victory.
“I thought it was Retegui’s best performance of this year. For his quality and intensity, he was a constant reference point for the rest of the team,” the 67-year-old said.
The coach said Atalanta, who crushed Juventus 4-0 before losing back-to-back matches to Inter Milan, Fiorentina and Lazio, did better to convert their chances against Bologna, but needed to further improve their counter-attacks.
“This has always been one of Atalanta’s main characteristics. By taking the lead early, we were able to stay solid and then had good chances on the counter-attack, where we could have had more precision,” Gasperini added.
Atalanta visit ninth-placed AC Milan next Sunday.
