Atalanta didn’t round off 2021 as they wished. However, this year has still been extremely positive. The Nerazzurri have gained one point against Genoa, as the match was tied 0-0 at the stadium Luigi Ferraris. It was a tough game with many physical collisions. As Berat Djimsiti said: “The pitch didn’t help us”.

Berat Djimsiti, it didn’t end with a victory, as you’d hope. You’ve gained one point that is good for the table. It was a tough, difficult match. The pitch was difficult enough, too.

“Yes. After that last match, in which we didn’t play well, we did want to round off this first round and this year, 2021, in a good way, because, all in all, we did well this year. Of course, we didn’t play well in some matches in 2021. I think, all in all, we can be satisfied, though. We must improve next year. It’s the thing we always do. We’ll keep on like that.”

It was really a tough match, physically as well. There were some harsh tackles.

“Yes, it’s always difficult to play here in Genoa against them. As you said before, the pitch wasn’t of much help. We had to put a lot of balls over the top. That’s why there have been so many tackles. We had to adjust our style of play. We didn’t manage to make good finishes.”

You said that 2021 was an important year. The first round ends with you having 38 points. You’ve set a record, you must be satisfied.

“Yes.”

You wished for more, didn’t you?

“Yes, we always do. I think the team, all of us, the club always try to improve. We always want more. On the one hand, we are surely happy about these 38 points. We’re still in top spots, we’re hooked to the top spots. But we always want to do more and better. We’ll try to do it.”