Gian Piero Gasperini assures Atalanta are ‘overall in a prestigious position’ this season and are excited to face Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League.
The second leg of this Round of 16 is on Thursday after the 3-2 home victory last week.
“We are playing in this wonderful arena and home advantage counts to a certain degree, but it’s also true that we played well in the first leg, we have a small advantage and want to make the most of it,” Gasperini told Sky Sport Italia.
After crashing out of the Coppa Italia and failing to go beyond the group stage in the Champions League, some might consider this season a disappointment for Atalanta, especially as they slip further behind the top four in Serie A.
“Atalanta are on their journey, it is a difficult campaign for everyone. We have the opportunity to continue in the Europa League, so there are positives. There were some negatives too, but Atalanta are overall in a prestigious position.
“Bayer Leverkusen are third in Germany, we saw how good they are, and the most important thing right now is progressing to the next round.”
Patrik Schick also missed the first leg, but Florian Wirtz has been ruled out by a torn ACL and Jeremie Frimpong is unavailable too.
“Schick has been out for a few weeks. It’s really sad for Wirtz, he’s young and so talented, a long-term injury is going to be damaging for his team, but hopefully his youth will help him recover more quickly.
“It’s always an exciting experience for us to play in Europe, facing quality teams in beautiful stadiums and finally with big crowds. It’s good for us to face up to the best teams in Europe.
“Both tournaments are really tough and if you don’t give your best, you risk paying the price.”
Luis Muriel bagged a brace in the first leg against Bayer Leverkusen, but fired blanks in Serie A with Genoa.
“Muriel had some really good chances against Genoa too. Sometimes he converts them, sometimes he doesn’t, but he always has an impact.
“He has many more starts than he used to, but I am happy with his form. When you are a striker, it can be a matter of centimetres between a goal and the woodwork.”