Gian Piero Gasperini insists Atalanta are ‘not struggling’ with a squad decimated by injuries and transfer rebels, ready to play the ‘incredibly prestigious’ UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid.
It kicks off in Warsaw on Wednesday at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).
This is the season opening traditional showdown between the winners of the Champions League and the Europa League holders, so La Dea get this as an extra reward having won their first ever UEFA tournament in May.
That saw them beat favourites Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the Final with an Ademola Lookman hat-trick, but going into this match, Teun Koopmeiners refused to play because he wants to force through a transfer to Juventus, with Nicolò Zaniolo, Gianluca Scamacca and Giorgio Scalvini all injured.
“Atalanta are not struggling. We are here to play an incredibly prestigious game with our usual enthusiasm and desire to amaze,” assured Gasperini in his press conference.
“We are playing against the most successful club in the world, we’ll give it all our pride to try and play a great game.
“Obviously, you want to reach this event at the top of your capabilities, but I have to say often when we had big matches, like the trip to Liverpool or elsewhere, we were missing some key players there too. I always asked the lads to give their all, without worrying about who was or wasn’t there.”
Gasperini and Ancelotti helped shape Calcio
The rapport with Carlo Ancelotti goes back so far that they even shared a classroom when getting their professional coaching badges together.
“What Carlo has done over the years is there for all to see, he is one of the most successful coaches in the world and a reference point for so many,” added Gasperini.
“We were on that Coverciano course together, we’ve known each other a long time and there is certainly a rapport of great mutual respect.
“It’s wonderful to meet in this event. Naturally, he’s more accustomed to it than I am, but it’s a fine achievement for me to be here too.”
Atalanta were the surprise Europa League victors last term, as Bayer Leverkusen went the entire season unbeaten except for that Final.
“On paper we are even more unlikely to win than we were against Bayer Leverkusen, but the motivation is even bigger for us. It doesn’t always happen, but in football sometimes you can upset the predictions,” smiled Gasperini.
Kylian Mbappé and Endrick are reportedly going to get their Real Madrid debuts tomorrow evening.
“I also have an advantage over Carlo, in that I can’t make the wrong choice for my starting XI, whereas he will have a few problems picking from that squad. This is the kind of pressure we want to put on him. I hope he picks the best, because only against the best can you get the utmost respect.
“An Italian team has not played this fixture in 14 years, so it is the best thing that could happen to us.”