Atalanta’s coach, Gian Piero Gasperini, discussed the club’s challenges and opportunities ahead of their match against Milan during a recent press conference.
Gasperini reported on the team’s injury woes saying, “Touré, Palomino and Toloi are sidelined due to injuries. Other types of injuries are regular, Kolasinac has a sprained ankle, but he’s played a series of incredible matches. Djimsiti might come back; he will undergo a test. It seems to me there aren’t so many injuries, we’ve actually been lucky not to have had many for a long time. As for the Under 23 players? We’ll see. It’s an older team with not many players who can be called up on Thursday.”
He expressed a clear focus on the present rather than the future regarding Percassi’s summer market, explaining, “At this moment I’m thinking about the present, I talk about the market in July and August. I personally believe that teams are built in July. The fact that Atalanta is watchful is a positive thing.”
As the coach reflected on the team’s previous match against Torino, he underscored the need for the team to give more effort. “We all have to give a bit more. There was a bit of fatigue on Monday, but this team always performs. Now is a time when we are having some problems, we all have to try to give a bit more.”
Gasperini acknowledged the strength of their next opponent, Milan, stating, “Milan has had significant defections, but they are now recovering some players. I don’t know how many they’ll have back, but there are these periods in the championship where the ability to manage, to adjust is key. At this moment we need even more attention and will. We are playing an important home game, we have to cling to the home advantage to extract the maximum energies, as Milan has done.”
Speaking about De Ketelaere, Gasperini expressed satisfaction at the young player’s performance and prospects. “He played a decent game on Monday, he’s a lad who is giving good responses. His growth is consistent, being a former player, he will have very high motivations.”