Atalanta director Luca Percassi assures the team will ‘give our all’ against Milan for second place and Gian Piero Gasperini will ‘absolutely’ remain.
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 UK time (18.45 GMT), click here for a match preview.
Gasperini had been due to speak with the media, until a statement announcing the change of plans an hour before this conference.
Atalanta director Luca Percassi assures the team will ‘give our all’ against Milan for second place and Gian Piero Gasperini will ‘absolutely’ remain.
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 UK time (18.45 GMT), click here for a match preview.
Gasperini had been due to speak with the media, until a statement announcing the change of plans an hour before this conference.
“I personally asked the coach if I could hold the press conference on behalf of the club, because it feels right to speak at the end of another extraordinary season,” said Percassi.
“We wish to thank everyone from the heart for all they’ve done, the coach and the players. They achieved something extraordinary.”
La Dea reached the Champions League for the third year in a row, played their second Coppa Italia Final in three years and could finish second in Serie A for the first time in their history.
Tomorrow’s game could secure second, but Milan know they need a victory to guarantee their own top four finish. Will Atalanta be deflated after losing the Coppa Italia Final 2-1 to Juventus on Wednesday?
“If we look at the last year, which was basically a season-and-a-half, we reached the Champions League quarter-finals with PSG, played the Coppa Italia Final and have many reasons to celebrate for a small-medium club that is becoming a regular in European football.
“Everything we are doing is the fruit of hard work, which we must never take for granted. We know what it means to compete in Serie A, we’re proud of what we are doing and see no negatives. We know who we are.
“We are talking about a very competitive Atalanta, and facing a strong Milan side already knowing we have the Champions League qualification locked down makes us very proud. Having said that, we will give our all tomorrow. Atalanta will play like Atalanta.”
Gasperini has not committed his future to the Bergamo club yet, so Percassi was asked what Atalanta are aiming for in future.
“The objective is always to improve. However, we begin every season declaring Serie A safety as our primary target, and that is a dogma we will never change. Atalanta are a small-medium club and every year we start from scratch.
“We earned our right to be where we are, all thanks to enormous hard work and struggle. Bergamo is a city built on work and Atalanta want to represent its city. There are no short-cuts, we have to work every day and have the perfect guide in the form of our coach.
“Will Gasperini stay with Atalanta? Absolutely.”