Maurizio Sarri has stepped into the Bortolotti Training Center, Atalanta's headquarters, to become their technical director. The contract was signed in the presence of Antonio and Luca Percassi, president and CEO, who welcomed the new coach on behalf of co-chairman Stephen Pagliuca.
Maurizio Sarri, 67, arrives at the Bergamo bench after winning a Europa League with Chelsea and a Scudetto with Juventus, and finishing second in the league with Lazio in the 2022-23 season. In the following season, again with the Biancocelesti, he reached the Champions League round of 16.
From 2015 to 2018, Sarri led Napoli, working in harmonious synergy with Sporting Director Cristiano Giuntoli, whom he reunites with at Atalanta. During his three seasons in Campania, he progressively improved Napoli's all-time points record, reaching 91 points in 2017/18 (a record that still stands), and consistently qualified for the Champions League with two second-place finishes and a third, earning him the Panchina d'Oro award for the 2015/16 season. In the 2018/19 season, at the helm of Chelsea, he achieved international recognition by winning the Europa League in the all-English final against Arsenal. The following season, he became champion of Italy with Juventus.
Sarri arrives in Bergamo with a resume of over 800 professional coaching experiences. His style of football will completely transform Atalanta's game, which for the past ten years has been based on the three-man defense introduced by Gian Piero Gasperini. The team will shift to a four-man defense, zonal marking, and a playmaking system centered around the deep-lying playmaker. Sarri demands that his teams apply quick connections, intensity, and pressing. This is a genuine revolution that will leverage the strengths of the current Atalanta squad, with the exception of Ederson, who will be moving to Manchester United, and will require the addition of players who fit well with the new coach's playing philosophy.
Credits: atalanta.it
