Atalanta CEO Luca Percassi will not say if they are the favourites in the Coppa Italia Final against Juventus tonight, but ‘may the best team win.’
It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).
You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens on the LIVEBLOG.
A winner must be decided tonight, so if it’s level after 90 minutes, they go to extra time or even penalties.
This is the first of two big Finals for La Dea this season, as they will also play Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League Final on May 22 in Dublin.
They had already played Juve in the 2021 Final, suffering a 2-1 defeat.
“We always feel confident before a game. We know it is a Final, the level will be extraordinary, but we deserve to be here and Atalanta will give our best,” Percassi told Sport Mediaset.
Atalanta’s approach to the sport has always been about financial sustainability, but they recently broke their club transfer record with Gianluca Scamacca and El-Bilal Toure, so are they still a ‘small and provincial’ club?
“We know who we are, where we come from, what we’ve done and that we do not have the funds of some other clubs, but we directors want to give the coach the best possible squad. We have increased the investments in recent years. There is a lot of work to be done and the objective is always to do the best for this club.”
Are Atalanta the favourites?
Scamacca is suspended, with Emil Holm and Sead Kolasinac injured, while Giorgio Scalvini is not at 100 per cent, so Marten de Roon drops into defence and Charles De Ketelaere starts upfront.
Juventus have been struggling recently and scraped a stoppage-time 1-1 draw with Salernitana at the weekend. Are the Old Lady really the underdogs tonight?
“They are a great team, tonight will be very difficult. Their tradition has them as a club with so many trophies, we know it doesn’t take much to change the enthusiasm levels of a side,” continued Percassi.
“We brought 25,000 Atalanta supporters to the Stadio Olimpico, with the enthusiasm and desire to represent our city. We know that we are up against a great side. May the best team win.
“It is extraordinary to have all these fans here. The affection towards us is shown in every occasion and when this many fans make sacrifices to come and follow the team, it fires us up even more with responsibility, pride and passion. We are not just representing Atalanta or even Bergamo, but the whole area.”