Gian Piero Gasperini was left to rue missed opportunities as Atalanta could only manage a 1-1 draw against 10-man Bologna on Saturday night. Lazar Samardzic’s superb strange from long range handed La Dea a late equalizer, saving them from further embarrassment after a 3-2 home loss to Como on Tuesday.
Despite failing to take home three points, Atalanta players didn’t disappoint Gasperini. There’s a feeling they could’ve done more, though. Jhon Lucumi received a straight red card early in the second half, handing the visitors plenty of time to overhaul Santiago Castro’s opener.
However, not until Samardzic’s brilliant strike from distance in the 90th minute could Atalanta find a way past Bologna’s deep defensive block. Gasperini’s side wasted several sitters in the game, but the Europa League-winning manager refuses to blame his out-of-form side.
“In the first half, Bellanova had several ideas, but we never managed to capitalize,” the Atalanta boss said, as reported by TMW. “At a certain point, then, we were playing with five forwards, but we had to be more lucid, even if I must say that the boys never gave up.
“If we had raised the technical level a little, maybe we would have managed to bring home the match.“
Gasperini was particularly satisfied with how Atalanta played in the first half. Ademola Lookman squandered a golden chance to break the deadlock. The game could’ve gone in another direction had he shown more composure.
“I’m happy with both the reaction and the performance, especially in the first half. The reaction after the goal was also thanks to the fact that Bologna were down to ten men. We could have scored earlier, but we lost a lot of balls and were also a bit unlucky. We leave with a point, but it’s too small for us.” the Atalanta boss concluded.
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