High-flying Salernitana head to Bergamo to take on out-of-sorts Atalanta in Monday’s must-win Serie A fixture that will round off Matchday 35. Both sides are in desperate need of points, albeit for different reasons.
Atalanta fought back from a two-goal deficit to hold Torino to an enthralling 4-4 home draw in midweek Serie A action, keeping their faint hopes of a sixth successive season in UEFA competition alive. With sixth-placed Lazio four points off, La Dea can ill-afford to drop more points against relegation-battling Salernitana.
Davide Nicola’s men were written off after coughing up a lead to lose to Roma four rounds back, with many seeing them as safe relegation boys at the start of the year. Little did anyone know the Granata would bounce back to win three consecutive Serie A matches, including a 2-1 home triumph over Fiorentina last time out.
What looked impossible only a couple of months ago now appears more than achievable for newly-promoted Salernitana, who head into proceedings as the most in-form Serie A side.
Road to survival now looks a fraction more feasible, and Salernitana possess the strength and mental fortitude to pull off one of the most sensational second-half-of-the-season comebacks in recent Serie A history.
Nicola’s team welcomed this matchday as the only side to have won their last three league outings. Though those three victories yielded a single-goal margin, Salernitana have every reason for optimism as they are about to encounter an out-of-form Atalanta side.
With just one win from five Serie A matches (D1, L3), Atalanta are on the verge of missing out on European qualification for the first time since 2015/16. A daunting trip to table-topping Milan is still to come, putting Gian Piero Gasperini’s stuttering side under even more pressure.
Sub-par displays against mid-table teams Torino, Sassuolo and Hellas Verona (D1, L2) have shown La Dea are far more vulnerable than in some previous seasons. Prone to silly defensive mistakes, Atalanta could face immense problems against Salernitana tank Milan Djuric, who comes into this fixture in stellar form.
Arguably the most dominant aerial player in Serie A opened the scoring against Fiorentina last time out, ending a four-game scoring drought. Back from suspension against La Viola, Djuric was a permanent aerial threat in Pietro Terracciano’s box, which should be the case at the Gewiss Stadium.
Given Salernitana’s recent showings, no one can put it past them to dent Atalanta’s top-six bid.