Juventus – Atalanta

Atalanta are on the move. Can they take points from pragmatic Juventus?

Atalanta were one of the big newsmakers of the week. The Bergamas rolled over Salernitana in the league, scoring eight goals, and in the Italian Cup they beat La Spezia 5-2. For the Goddess, such performance in one match was historic, while the last time they had scored eight goals in the league was 27 years ago! Gian Piero Gasperini's switch to an ultra-aggressive 3-4-3 formation obviously paid off and journalists immediately spoke of a return to the team's former strength. And the Boga-Heulund-Lukman attacking trio could well assert themselves on a number of occasions. Atalanta looked good before these meetings. In the new year, Bergamas managed to split points with La Spezia and defeat Bologna. At the moment, Gasperini's charges are sitting in sixth place, but the absence of European Cup meetings is a plus for them against their rivals. "The Goddess have a chance of closing the gap and getting back into the top four. All the team has to do is improve their defensive play, with seven goals conceded in four games this year. But "classic" Atalanta's defence has always been indifferent, because you could simply score more than you concede. Isn't that right? Juventus broke their long winning streak with a special display. "The Old Lady didn't just lose to Napoli in the last round, but did so with a 5-1 victory. The Turin side's utter declinations were partially redeemed with a win against Monza in the Italian Cup. The 2-1 success came at a heavy price: with a plethora of injuries, Alegre had few options for the rotation. Obviously, the tight calendar can play havoc with the Bianconeri in such circumstances. Tellingly, Juventus have only managed to beat Atalanta once in the past five meetings. Last season, however, Juventus recorded a win against Bergamas and their second leg ended in a 1-1 draw. It is also worth mentioning that the Goddess have lost only one away game this season. In the remaining eight games, victories were recorded six times. Napoli suffered a heavy blow to Juventus' reputation. "The Azzurri have snapped their long winning streak, while Atalanta could well prevent a new one from starting. If Gasperini's side play as strongly as they did, they are guaranteed points.