Atalanta director Umberto Marino jokes about being drawn with Real Madrid and Arsenal in the Champions League, but reveals Liverpool were happy not to face them again. ‘It’s an important page in the history of the club.’
The draw for the new format of the 2024-25 Champions League was completed this evening at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, although the precise dates and order of the fixtures will not be confirmed until Saturday August 31.
Gigi Buffon and Cristiano Ronaldo were in charge of picking the teams, or pressing buttons so the computer could do it.
La Dea will host Real Madrid – who they faced earlier this month in the UEFA Super Cup – Shakhtar Donetsk and Young Boys, with trips to Arsenal, Celtic and Sturm Graz.
“I chased Buffon down the corridor and threatened him, because he cannot come back to Bergamo after what he did to us,” joked Marino on Sky Sport Italia.
“Joking aside, I think tonight we are telling an important page in the history of Atalanta, because playing against Real Madrid, Barcelona, Arsenal, Celtic, Young Boys, Sturm Graz and Stuttgart is pretty unique. It’s marvellous, the pitch will tell us who does best, but as always we’ll aim to cause everyone problems.”
The top eight go directly into the next phase, while the mid-table sides will go into play-offs. Were the other clubs happy or upset at getting paired with Atalanta?
“I haven’t spoken to the other clubs yet. I only saw Liverpool, they told us they didn’t want to come back to Bergamo! We are playing fantastic teams with remarkable squads and atmospheres, we aim to learn from them on and off the field.”
Liverpool were hammered at Anfield and knocked out of the Europa League by Atalanta on their way to lifting the trophy.
Atalanta ever-changing in Champions League
It has been a difficult summer for Atalanta, who were pushed into selling Teun Koopmeiners to Juventus, while Ademola Lookman was also targeted by foreign clubs including PSG and Arsenal.
Will they feel more satisfied at proving how good La Dea are at finding talent and selling them on at a profit, or sad that players who grew so much in Bergamo were demanding to leave?
“It’s a good question. There is a little sadness, but we must look forward. The thing that counts the most is only Atalanta, our philosophy and values remain strong. We must focus on hard work, because we are still a small club against the most colossal clubs in Europe.”
Atalanta
Real Madrid H, Barcelona A, Arsenal H, Shakhtar Donetsk A, Celtic H, Young Boys A, Sturm Graz H, Stuttgart A