Last weekend was a miserable one indeed for Brescia Calcio fans. On Sunday, the Biancoazzurri were finally relegated from Serie A, following a 2-1 home defeat to Catania. Yet, the result was made all the worse given what had happened the previous day at the nearby home of their fiercest rivals in Bergamo, Atalanta.
The club nicknamed “The Goddess” had just gained promotion from Serie B in style, with a 4-1 demolition of Portoguaro on Saturday evening.
The result confirmed their promotion along with Siena, just one season after falling out of the top flight. But whilst the black and white colours of “The Robur” may well be welcomed back into Serie A with open arms, it’s unlikely that many teams will look as favourably on the return of Atalanta.
After all, there are few sides in Italy with a more fiercely loyal following. More importantly, the Atleti Azzurri d’Italia’s Curva Nord or North Curve stand has been the scene of many an ugly confrontation with the so call “Ultras” of the clubs support.
Rival Siena manager Antonio Conte knows this ugly side of the club well too. Last season he was manager of struggling Atalanta side under pressure from their fans to deliver results. Things came to a head in a January home defeat to Napoli.
Throughout the match coach Conte was verbally abused by his own fans, with chants of “Back in Turin, we are not Juventus” one of the cleaner examples on show.
At the conclusion of the game, Conte confronted his own fans, as chaos broke out in the stands. The former Azzurri midfielder had seen enough. The next day he tended his resignation and come May, Atalanta were relegated. Though not the first time, in truth few were sad to see them go. Genoa, Fiorentina, Lazio, Roma, Inter and AC Milan have long established histories with the club and it’s fans.
Yet for all the negative history associated with the club and Serie A, things are certainly looking positive for the future of the Nerazzurri. This year’s immediate return to the top flight was the best response to his critics for manager Stefano Colantuono.
The Luciano Spalletti look alike is in his second stint with the club, following a highly successful two year spell which ended in 2007 after he guided the club to 7th place in the league. Colantuono was promptly snapped up by Palermo, before becoming the latest victim of trigger happy Rosanero chairman Maurizio Zamparini in 2009.
A couple of disjointed seasons in Serie B with Torino saw struggles with Il Toro before nearly bringing promotion before losing most aptly to Brescia.
Now with Atalanta, Colantuono is undoubtedly relishing another shot at the big time in Italy. Whether he can achieve this with his current squad remains to be seen, though he will be able to call on a wealth of Serie A experience. As is so often the case in Serie B, Atalanta have gained promotion with a squad of veterans attempting to rediscover former glories.
Thirty-six year old Nicola Amoruso is a new addition to the squad having played for a host of top flight Italian clubs including Juventus in the late nineties. The club’s top scorer Simone Tiribocchi is a 33 year old striker with a similar journeyman pedigree and 13 goals from 31 appearances for the Orobici.
Then there is Cristiano Doni. Second only to Tiribocchi in the scoring charts for Atalanta, the former Azzurri international has been enjoying an Indian summer with the club having scored 12 goals from 32 games. Like Colantuono, Doni is in his second spell with the club.
From 1998 to 2003, Doni was the established star of the team with a series of dazzling displays earning him a place in the Italian national squad at the 2002 World Cup. Now 38 and in the final straights of his career, Doni is five years into a second spell with the club and continues to be the face of the team – much like Francesco Totti at Roma.
Two hundred and sixty two games for the black and blues have brought 91 goals have come alongside stories of Doni taking various paycuts to stay with his beloved team in the autumn of his career. The chance to see Doni take the field for one last Scudetto campaign may just change the minds of many a naysayer when it comes to Atalanta.
However the club’s ageing squad will need to be greatly overhauled during the summer months. Key midfielder Gennaro Delvecchio is only at the club on loan from Catania and could be a big miss.
Elsewhere, South American trio Adriano Ferreira Pinto, Carlos Carmona and Edgar Barreto will need to show more consistency in the midfield than they did in their previous stint in the top league.
Yet the most concerning aspect remains upfront. Top scorer Tiribocchi will struggle to find goals as easy in Serie A, whilst Doni’s status as the club’s second top scorer points to a key lack of effective target men at the club. Francesco Ruopolo was signed from Albinoleffe with the promise of goals yet has struggled for form.
At least then, Atalanta can call on a new and more importantly wealthy club president to bank roll their move up. Former player and entrepreneur Antonio Percassi returned to control the club in June 2010, after 16 years away from the role of President.
Yet with a personal business turnover of 400 million Euros, Percassi may well be willing to spend in order to gain success next year.
Could the club lure back former star Filippo Inzaghi? Will they look to invest heavily in African and South American youth talent? Let’s just hope that next year Atalanta can make headlines for the right reasons.
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