النظام الدفاعي لسارّي وجامباولو

 Atalanta's Gasperini

At the beginning of the 2016-17 season, like many coaches, the newly employed coach Gian Piero Gasperini had been questioned, Atalanta did not get results. That evokes Gasperini with a decision to keep Atalanta's bench, "We were not lucky in the first two or three matches. I did a bit of measures for the team, I saw Caldara, Gagliardini, and Conti feeling good and I have them all lined up against Napoli: maybe I was lucky but for years I said that you had to realize this idea." However, the season ended beyond expectation, the Bergamaschi is now playing in the last 32 of the Europa League. 

The idea former Genoa coach has realized was the trust of young players, ever he has launched many careers of young players. His experience at Juventus youth level has helped him, he served his boyhood club youth sector for 9 years, "working with youngsters was fundamental for me" Gasperini continues, "I [was responsible] for the whole Juventus youth sector starting from 12-year boys. It was nice baggage that I still carry with me. This path certainly still influences me now."

After his reign at Juventus youth sector he was appointed as Crotone coach in the 2003-04 season, the Calabrese side promptly won promotion to the Serie B. In 2005, Genoa chose Gasperini to take them to the Serie A, the long-awaited promotion has been successfully achieved. However, after 2006-07 salvation Genoa surprised everyone by fighting over a champions league spot which has been lost to Fiorentina's Prandelli, despite that both teams had the same points, the Viola won it through the head-to-head record.

Gasperini sacked from the Grifone after four years, he then had a short stint at Inter and fired from Nerazzurri without a win. The Gasp then appointed as Palermo coach and yet also ended up sacked, the last station before Atalanta was his second spell at Genoa, he left the Ligurian side carried on the shoulders by fans.

As many, the Piedmontese coach has been immensely impressed by Van Gaal's Ajax in the 90s, to the extent that it actually shaped his football. "I used 4-3-3 until I saw Ajax of Van Gaal". His 3-4-3 is, however, different from Van Gaal's, the latter has diamond midfield while Gasperini prefers a flat midfield with a double pivot. The Dutch has influenced Gasperini even defensively, the 59-year-old opted a man marking pressing system wherever he goes. "I am a coach who 'copies' and draws a bit from everyone. I'm not one who invents but who takes cues from so many situations. I copy and transform, trying to give my interpretation." Gasperini was a member of Pescara's Giovanni Galeone in the late eighties; Galeone launched some kind of school in Abruzzo and influenced many coaches, he also admired former Bari coach and his coach at Pescara Enrico Catuzzi as well as being close to Marcello Lippi's work at his days in Juventus primavera. "When I was a player I watched Catuzzi with admiration. He was the first coach in Italy to move from man-to-zonal marking in the early 80s. Then surely I was inspired by Galeone, and Lippi because when I was Juventus youth coach he was in the first team. Beyond the coaches, I was attracted first by the Dutch school, and then the Spanish one."

"With him at Genoa, we had a great time and we have had entertained, he has clear ideas and knows how to transmit them." Diego Milito

"Gasperini was my teacher. In the beginning, it was not easy, I played out wide and I did not like it. Then he taught me to mark better, run on the wing and then attack. All things I had never done in my career." Rodrigo Palacio

"I worked with coaches like Mourinho, Ancelotti, and Rafa Benitez, but nobody like Gasperini. He taught me so much on a human, technical and tactical level." Thiago Motta

Speaking about the squad, Atalanta have a young team with interesting prospects, besides some experienced players. Moreover, Atalanta's academy considered as one of the best academies in Italy with a number of players annually graduated from, a place suits Gasperini perfectly. Mattia Caldara and the duo Andrea Conti and Roberto Gagliardini who left for Milan and Inter respectively in winter 2017 all are from Atalanta Primavera and flourished under Gasperini. With another two interesting incoming prospects, Alessandro Bastoni and Filippo Melegoni both born in 1999.

However, Gasp has implemented a fixed positional play. La Dea is applying almost all positional play principles, maximum width, depth, half-space, creation of triangles and positional rotations. Gasperini utilized his beloved 3-4-3/3-4-2-1 system with a wing-focused game.

Generally, in their build-up Atalanta are varied in short passes or long passes towards the opponents' half, targeting the striker Andrea Petagna or Bryan Cristante. Strategically as said, Atalanta's game lies strongly down the wings, in early build-up phases they tend to attract the opponent centrally using the two pivots and create a chain on the wing with the center backs out wide.

Same as in progressive phase, the positioning of the two pivots on the half-spaces pushes the center backs wide and allows the team to progress through the wing. Interestingly, the center backs -Masiello on the right whereas Jose Luis Palomino on the left as center backs and between them Caldara (the latter does not act the same way)- have a further role as they are offering contribution up field. The ball near center back usually act like a fullback and double the wing pushing the wing back higher up in the same vertical line. On the sides, the national Leonardo Spinazzola on the left while in the right the pacey Hans Hateboer, the two wing-backs involved in some rotational movement such as moving inside when the center back move up on the ball side, or even pushing up when the winger drop or drift wide.

Center backs effectively utilized to create overloads on the wing. 
*Masiello played as left CB vs. Milan

However, in an advanced area, one of the pivots become part of the aforementioned chain on the wing as they drift wide at times. The two pivots are the regular Remo Freuler and/or Bryan Cristante/Marten De Roon, the pair can found themselves in the same horizontal line and being a connection between the two sides to switch the play, as well as offering supported runs towards the depth in progressive phases.

The two pivots provide connection to both sides; they also move laterally helping in creating diamonds and triangles.

Wingers initial position is inside on the half-spaces. Yet, the exceptional dribbler Papu Gomez frequently drifts wide whether in the strong side or the other side, while Josip Ilicic has more central role likewise for Cristante who sometimes plays this position. 

Up front, Gasperini relies more on Andrea Petagna, despite that his only strength is physicality he is a regular starter, though his movement in the final third is highly effective, dragging defenders with his diagonal run allowing his teammate to exploit the space he creates. In every other respect, he is merely trying as in linking up and providing lay offs for the third man, patterns that can be useful when lining up Andreas Cornelius. Also, Papu's cutting inside is a kind of sign to the strikers to move diagonally in reverse to his, same as for the far wing back in behind the opponent's backline.

The attacking wingers involved in positional rotations with the wing backs, mainly Papu with Spinazzola. Another simple positional rotation occurs as the wing back moves inside whilst the center back push up often with the ball.

Atalanta are very proactive when it comes to negative transition, they are well prepared and able to prevent and control counters, and are one of the best teams if not the best in counter-pressing. However, prior to any potential transition, Atalanta's players behind the ball aim to control the closest zone of the ball, with an aggressive man oriented counter-pressing in case of ball loss. As in the last photo Atalanta defenders even man mark their direct opponent in a higher zone, closing down immediately in the case of ball loss, furthermore, their positional structure is highly stable with a good number around the ball.

Apart from the structure notice that the players advance rather than recover and track back.

"My players go to shorten often trying to get the ball instead of waiting for the opponent. If you are close to the opponent you can steal the ball, the contraindication is the yellow cards: Nowadays the referees punish much more". Gian Piero Gasperini

Gasperini's man marking does not merely rely on the individual qualities as one would suggest, although Gasperini or Bielsa both whose football derived from Van Gaal do not fully disagree with such statement as Gasperini also insists "What counts is the players’ reading and anticipation of the play, which no one does anymore”. However, players taught to know where and when to follow or tightly mark an opponent. Some reference points to be taken into accounts, mechanisms to be followed of any given situation. Gasperini wants his defenders to be proactive tracking direct opponent and/or to rush immediately into the direct opponent if he is a potential option preventing him from receiving. Defenders are very aggressive in their tackles preventing the opponent from turning, and aiming to regain the ball as quickly as possible.

"Be strong on the anticipation and on the man" Alessandro Bastoni continues, "It takes us a while to understand what Gasperini wants from defenders, but once you understand and enter in the perspective of being ahead of the opponent, it is a system that bears many fruits. Two defenders always focus on the anticipation while the other covers. Often if you recover the ball you are practically in goal and many of our goals are born from the recovery of a defender."

Atalanta with situational 3-3-4 with the CB Masiello breaking the backline tracking his man.

Atalanta have different and more rigid man marking than some other teams in Italy, teams like Juve, Lazio or SPAL for instance are less rigid, the mentioned teams' midfield is more zone-oriented while Atalanta seeks a one against one throughout the field including the midfielders and concern about the man within their zone. Atalanta move from their base 3-4-3 into 5-2-3 and 5-4-1 in a lower zone, even though their shape out of possession is not stable as player focus more on the man and then the ball and lastly teammates which causes some issues mainly in horizontal compactness. Wing backs are deep initially, then they move up closing down immediately, center backs as well as the sweeper Caldara constantly break the line and follow their direct opponent.

When pressing high one of the two pivots has more advanced position as he marks the opponent's holding midfielder, wherefore against Juventus Freuler marks Pjanic while against Lazio Cristante assigned to mark Lucas Leiva. However, as the last two photos suggest, against Lazio Cristante initially deeper in inactive play and when the opponents try to get the ball out from the back. While in the last photo Atalanta apply ultra-offensive pressure against Juventus with Cristante higher up in active play, that's due to his assigned player mostly and the game plan on the other hand.

Defenders follow direct opponent into higher distances.

1440 & 264 - Atalanta have made the most recoveries (1440) and won the most tackles (264) in Serie A this season. (Stats from Opta)

Atalanta's dispersed midfield along the width.

Two obvious issues man marking suffer from, defenders manipulation and secondly connection, even though speaking about compactness issues is dispensable in Gasperini's system as players dispersed throughout the field and concern about the man at first, and less likely to cover each other. However, the backline is more organic and center backs oftentimes cover the wing back when the latter advances other than this basic pattern the team lack horizontal compactness even if it is not concerning in such system. In addition, another less problematic issue that is the vertical compactness between the backline and midfield line, however, defenders are -notice the last GIF- proactive in this situation as they immediately anticipate opponents behind the midfield line.

Overfocusing on the options allows the ball carrier to dribble penetrating first line, another issue Atalanta's man-marking face and struggle with.

On the counter Atalanta are ferocious, they spring out from all sides, something they benefit from their shapeless man marking, wing backs out wide, defenders advance every now and then bringing the ball back and midfielders ready to attack the depth.

Conclusion

Atalanta yet again are trying to seize a place in Europe for next season, with an interesting game ahead against Napoli. A game against German giant Dortmund in Europa league. Atalanta the small Lombardian side found consistency in performance, a clear identity and player development under Gasperini which makes Antonio Percassi busy during the transfer market, something Gasp used to under his previous boss Enrico Preziosi at Genoa. Despite that Gasperini's tied with Atalanta until 2020, his name has been linked with Milan lately. In spite that Milan's condition is not far from Inter's when he was at the helm of the snakes, both big clubs are impatient for a coach like him. In the end, one wish that Gasperini got a big bench, a bench he deserves.