Legendary coach Arrigo Sacchi expects a fascinating tactical battle in the UEFA Super Cup between Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid and Gian Piero Gasperini’s Atalanta. ‘They focus on attacking and dominating matches.’
The showdown kicks off at the National Stadium in Warsaw on Wednesday at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).
If the scores are level after 90 minutes, then it will go directly to a penalty shoot-out to decide who lifts the silverware.
This is the season opener between the holders of the Champions League and Europa League, but curiously both teams have Italian coaches at the helm.
“They are two coaches who, with different methods and styles, try to cause problems for their opponents. They do not focus only on defending, but on attacking and dominating matches,” Sacchi told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Gasperini proved in the 3-0 Europa League Final triumph over an unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen that attack is the best form of defence, using all his strikers to overload the German team.
“Over the years, Gasperini has done extraordinary things with an Atalanta side that have never been among the biggest clubs in our league. I admire his aggression, which inevitably also carries risks along with it.
“By playing in that style, he often leaves his players one-on-one. That means the coach has courage and passes that on to his team. If someone has courage, it means he knows how to overcome those difficulties.”
Sacchi was a mentor to Ancelotti and admires Gasperini
Ancelotti was a player in Sacchi’s iconic Grande Milan squad and started his coaching career as an assistant to his mentor, but after a shaky start trying to emulate Sacchi, really flourished after finding his own way forward.
“I always say Carletto is the encyclopaedia of football. This sport has no secrets for him and he can call upon that vast experience. Carlo manages to deal with many top level champions and always gets the best out of them. Have you seen how the Real Madrid strikers track back to help the defence? Who do you think convinced them to do that? He knows that you win with the collective and the individual must be at the disposal of the team.”
Atalanta were already the underdogs, let alone after losing Gianluca Scamacca, Nicolò Zaniolo, Teun Koopmeiners, Rafael Toloi and Giorgio Scalvini. Can they cause an upset?
“Why not? After all, at this stage of the season, nobody is in good shape. I still remember the extraordinary Atalanta performances against Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen,” assured Sacchi.
“If they are in the right mood, they are capable of playing fantastic, exciting football. Gasperini’s Atalanta, unlike most Italian teams, run risks, attack and show no fear. Ancelotti is wise, a natural quality of the man that allowed him to win over the fans and the players. Where others impose their will, he gets those results with dialogue.”