Atalanta claimed an important win away to Empoli, as they scored 4 goals, missed a penalty and conceded only one. The hosts never gave up, but the Nerazzurri were always alert and attack-minded, as Gian Piero Gasperini said: “We created a lot of chances”.

It was a good win, with many goals, finally!

“Well, yes. It’s not been a good period for us. We’ve been playing some very good matches lately. The last three matches before the break were top-level games and today’s game was tricky, as this has always been a difficult venue for us. Empoli are a very attack-minded side, who know how to create chances. We had to hold out, sometimes we complicated our life but we were always attack-minded, we created a lot of chances. The second half was surely easier.”

You were always focused on the game, as this Empoli side do not allow anything. They’ve always been there looking for an Atalanta mistake to reopen the game.

“This year there are a lot of teams who play to get the three points, to get the win. They attack with many players, so, you are much more likely to see more open matches, with a lot of chances, with threatening chances coming from the opposition. But today we created a lot of opportunities, we could have finished it off earlier. In the second half, the game got easier.”

What about Iličić? He’s back. He bagged a brace and almost added a third. Zapata also scored his 100th goal in Serie A and Freuler claimed his 100th Serie A win. There are a few stats that are making you smile but these are important facts. Just to mention, Iličić scored a double and you said Atalanta need the greatest Iličić.

“Iličić’s performance today was devastating. It’s undoubted that with this kind of Iličić we are stronger. He did very well with his national team. And perhaps, his recent performances – which weren’t that great – gave him a better condition. If he is this fit, we are undoubtedly stronger. I saw in training that he was in good shape. I decided last night, as I wanted to start Malinovskyi and then throw him on as usual. But then I saw he was going strong in the last two sessions. Today he did very well, like everyone. Zapata was in great shape before the break and now he’s lacking a bit of it, but he scored too, this will boost his morale. I’m also happy for Muriel, as he came back from a long injury and he did very well in the first half.”

However, Atalanta are not lucky with injuries.

“This is a huge problem. We lost Toloi today. However, we’re in good spirits. We defended well even without him. It’s clear that the match against Manchester will be another kind of game. The problem is that these are quite long injuries.”

– Even Toloi’s?

“Given it’s a relapse, it’s difficult to think any of the injured players will be back for the next 6 matches, within the next 20 days. Five players are out, moreover, they’re regulars, as we’re talking about Toloi, Djimsiti, Gosens, Hateboer and Pessina. They’re all key players for us, hence these injuries affect us. But we’re in good spirits. We’ve got a good mindset. We’ll be able to make up for it.”