Atalanta take on the visitors AS Roma in the round 18 match of Italian Serie A. The match will be played on Saturday, January 3rd at New Balance Arena (Bergamo).
Atalanta are trying to make amends for an unsuccessful summer gamble on Juric. The Bergamaschi spent a long period playing quite successfully under Gian Piero Gasperini. Last season they once again showed a high level: they reached the Champions League playoffs and confidently finished third in Serie A, even though the coach had announced in spring that he would leave. He was replaced by a Croatian specialist, and that know turned out to be a clear mistake. It was no coincidence that he was dismissed already in autumn and replaced by Palladino. The new coach managed to stabilize the situation fairly quickly, and under him La Dea regained momentum both in the Champions League, where they beat Chelsea 2-1, and in domestic competition. The year 2024 ended with a clash against Inter, which resulted in a narrow 0-1 defeat. Overall, recent performances suggest that Atalanta have restored structure and confidence after the turbulent first months. Their results indicate a return to consistency, especially in matches against strong opposition.
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Roma have been unable to return to the Champions League for quite some time. There were serious expectations last season, but instead the campaign started poorly under De Rossi and especially under Juric. Even the temporary return of Ranieri from retirement was not enough to lift the club into the Serie A top four, with just one point missing. Now the new head coach, Gasperini, continues to reshape the Wolves’ playing style according to his vision. As a result, there were several defeats in the Europa League, but the task of reaching the playoffs there has essentially already been solved. In the domestic league, Roma briefly pushed into the leading group, but setbacks against direct rivals Napoli and Juventus dropped them slightly lower again. In the latest round against Genoa, they at least secured a fairly convincing 3-1 victory. That win helped stabilize morale after uneven results in previous weeks. However, overall form still points to inconsistency when facing top-level opponents.
In the last six head-to-head matches, the Yellow and Reds managed only one draw while suffering five defeats. In the capital, there is hope that Gasperini’s move to Rome can finally break this negative trend. The hosts are expected to succeed here. However, Gasperini knows Atalanta very well, so the bet is that his current team will avoid defeat against his former club.
Prediction for the match: AS Roma to win.
