Before their Champions League match, Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini has praised Arsenal, but he still has faith in his team to pull off another upset. Gasperini now faces a difficult test against Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal in the redesigned Champions League. Gasperini led Atalanta to Europa League glory last season, defeating teams like Liverpool along the way. The primary objective for Atlanta in the new format is to make it to the knockout stages.
The 66-year-old coach maintained his team’s goal while acknowledging Arsenal’s strength and confirming that Ademola Lookman is fit to play against the Gunners. “Atalanta needs to understand that we are not yet at the same level as these major teams, but we play with one goal in mind and will continue to do so tomorrow,” Gasperini stated.
“We have a very tough opponent to start with, but this match gives us a chance to test ourselves,” he went on. Although I don’t personally know Arteta, I have the utmost respect for him as a coach. His team plays attractive football and is compact and well-organized. Despite the fact that they were unable to win the Premier League, the results speak for themselves.
“We had an excellent Europa League campaign, winning a competition that had eluded us for many years,” Gasperini continued, reflecting on Atalanta’s recent success. We now want to maintain our competitiveness in the Champions League. Although it will be difficult to place in the top eight, we must strive to score points in each game in order to stay in the ninth to twenty-fourth spot.
