Atalanta called to play according to Sarri and free from constraints

(PRIMASPORT) BERGAMO – The time has come to play football, with a clear head and an eye on the ball. This is how Maurizio Sarri summed up the conversation he had with the editorial staff of Bergamo's newspapers about Atalanta's development. Sarri doesn't want the time needed for his players to implement his tactics to become an excuse for the expected results. He admits that compared to their first matches, which yielded six points, the team has raised its center of gravity by twenty meters and demonstrated greater territorial supremacy and ball possession. However, these haven't translated into goals. Ultimately, Atalanta scored fewer goals than they should have and could have, and managed to limit their losses thanks to a superb Carnesecchi. Sarri makes it clear that his job is to lead the team into the final 25 meters, where greater incisiveness is needed and individual initiative is found to target the goal. In short, less static play and lateral passing, abandoning the divot to inject dynamism into the play. It's the philosophy of zonal play, where the key is being able to interpret situations and capitalize on them. This is what Sarri's history tells us, from his time at Napoli under Giuntoli to his current role at Atalanta, through Juventus, Chelsea, and Lazio. Different situations and response times. In Bergamo, in just a few months, and with the disadvantage of not being able to immediately access many players who played in the World Cup, a major transformation has been achieved, considering the decade-long tradition of playing with a three-man defense. Sarri assures that his players have learned the tactics and movements; it's a matter of implementing them, freeing themselves from the conceptual constraints that have so far prevented effective and productive attacking play. From the long international break, Sarri is seeing positives, such as Scamacca's return to scoring, whose prolific performance is crucial, and the performances of De Ketelaere, deployed as the Belgium attacking fulcrum, a position he doubles for Atalanta considering Krstović's contribution. Scalvini, who performed very well for the Azzurri, is expected to show significant growth, including in terms of personality. Rowe also has high expectations, hoping he can disrupt opposing defenses. Atalanta restarts with an extra day to prepare for the match against Venezia, postponed on Monday the 12th, and with a dozen players returning from their respective national team commitments. Then, until November 8th, nine consecutive matches. In practice, they play every three days, and the matches themselves become opportunities to correct situations that are normally refined in training. The defense is in dire straits: only center-backs Scalvini and Kristensen are available, waiting to have Kossounou and Hien back, with Obric a possible replacement or the experienced Kolasinac ready to step into the role if necessary. This is an Atalanta side that features a deep midfield, specifically Gaetano, whom Sarri is counting heavily on, but they could see their 4-3-3 formation changed to a 4-2-3-1, given the abundance of attacking midfielders. The coach isn't ruling it out, even from the start. It depends on the situation and the opponent's tactics. Without Sarri-ism. Who found a welcome in a place and a club held up as an example in the national and European football scene. (PRIMASPORT)