Story behind the game
Atalanta come off a strong performance against Internazionale as they tied 1-1. Robin Gosens scored late in the second half to help La Dea tie the match and help Atalanta move up in the standings. Gian Piero Gasperini’s side come into this match in good form as they have won four of their last six league outings.
La Dea will aim to make their fourth consecutive win at the Gewiss Stadium when they take on last place team SPAL. As the host this season, Atalanta have five wins, one draw and three defeats in Bergamo and Parma. The home side have averaged 3.11 goals scored per match and in the past three league matches, they have scored eleven goals. While their Serie A season and Champions League gone well, the same couldn’t be said of the Coppa Italia as they lost to Fiorentina 2-1, exiting from the tournament.
As for SPAL, their struggles continue after losing their past league match against Fiorentina. German Pezzella scored late into the match to help the Viola win 1-0 and deal another blow to Spal’s season. The loss was their fifth in their last six Serie A matches. The Biancazzurri find themselves sitting in last place in the league, four points behind Lecce from safety.
While the losses continue to compile, scoring has been another issue for SPAL this season. The club has a league low twelve goals, while in their past five matches, they have managed to score three goals. They will need to start scoring if they are to have any chance of leaving with points against an Atalanta side who leads the league in scoring with 49 goals this season.
Team news
Atalanta injuries: Timonthy Castagne (Questionable), while Hans Hateboer will be serving a one game suspension.
SPAL injuries: Marco D’Alessandro (Out Indefinitely), Mohamed Fares (Out Indefinitely), Andrea Petagna (Questionable), Mirko Valdifiori (Questionable), Felipe (Questionable)
Predicted line-up
Atalanta (3-4-1-2): Gollini – Djimsiti, Toloi, Palomino – Gosens, Castagne, Pasalic, D.Roon – Gomez – Zapata, Ilicic
SPAL (3-5-2): Berisha – Igor, Cionek, Vicari – Reca, Strefezza, Murgia, Missiroli, Dabo – Petagna, D.Francesco
Key Clashes
Alejandro Gomez has been a welcome addition for La Dea since his return from injury as, in their last three league games, they have won two and tied one. In his return against AC Milan, he made an instant impact in the match as he scored in the first ten minutes of the game which led to the game winning goal. The forward has scored six goals and seven assists in eighteen games played this season. In his recent three league matches, the forward has two goals and two assists.
Since returning from injury, Josip Illicic has been another player which Atalanta are quite happy to have back in their lineup. In his return against AC Milan, he made his presence known right away as he scored two goals and had one assist. In the past three league matches, the midfielder has scored four goals and had one assist.