Palladino: ‘Atalanta will be aggressive with Dortmund, Ederson not 100 per cent’
Raffaele Palladino gives an injury update on Ederson and assures Atalanta will ‘be aggressive’ against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League play-off.
It kicks off at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo at 17.45 GMT (18.45 CET).
While La Dea have seen their Serie A form totally revitalised since coach Palladino took over in November from Ivan Juric, including Sunday’s comeback 2-1 win over Napoli, the Champions League has been a different matter.
They had been on the verge of qualifying directly for the Round of 16, but their 2-0 loss in Dortmund was the third consecutive defeat in this competition.
Palladino has faith in Atalanta comeback
“I don’t need many words before a game like this, I just need to be clear, look at their eyes, and see that they believe,” Palladino told Sky Sport Italia.
“We want to have our say, we want to enjoy this match, because it is also a valuable experience. We are facing a strong opponent, we studied them carefully, and will try to play in the style of Atalanta with our fans and our characteristics.”
Ederson had been expected to be in the starting XI, but as he is only on the bench, it was evidently more than just a twinge he suffered during the first leg.
“There hasn’t been enough time to really test Ederson out and get him back to 100 per cent, but he is at our disposal, we’ll see if he is needed in the second half. He had a test this morning.”
Charles De Ketelaere and Giacomo Raspadori are both long-term absentees, so Gianluca Scamacca is supported by Nicola Zalewski and Lazar Samardzic.
“The three forwards need to do well off the ball, be aggressive also on their goalkeeper, who is basically a sweeper-keeper. Dortmund have such quality in the middle and damaged us from the start with their vertical passes into space, they’ve got pace, and we must try to limit their strengths,” continued the Atalanta coach.
“It is also important that we are better when in possession, as we made a few too many mistakes in Dortmund.”
There is a big game coming up for Borussia Dortmund against Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, but they bolster their line-up with the return of captain Emre Can after a month out.
“Borussia Dortmund brought in Emre Can, so that shows they are focused here and using their best starting XI. It’s the Champions League, how could they possibly be distracted? We’re glad they are using their best team, as if we can turn this around, it’ll make it even more special,” assured Palladino.