Genoa – Gian Piero Gasperini raises the large cup, 13 kilos of silver that make up the Europa League trophy. He raised it three times in front of the thousands of jubilant fans who came from Bergamo to Dublin to see the Goddess win her first European trophy. In a way that the coach defines as “extraordinary”. And it really is, if you think not only of the 3-0 in the final against Leverkusen, but of the level of other opponents defeated along the way, “teams like Marseille, Sporting Lisbon and Liverpool, who when we went there they were first in the Premier League”. The coach is proud of his players. For them he repeats “extraordinary”. The victory in Dublin “is a great satisfaction after a memorable performance”.
He paid what seemed like a gamble, initially deploy the attack trident. “There were all the conditions to play in this way, in a unique match, which we had to win. You can’t just defend in a match like this” he replies. “Without a shadow of a doubt it is a deserved cup, winning the Europa League is truly an achievement. We needed such a prestigious trophy. My future? I have to talk to the president, now let’s celebrate” he concludes.
“It’s a dream that has come true… seeing how much these fans love Atalanta is wonderful. In Bergamo now everyone will be on the streets celebrating.” Here is president Antonio Percassi, his eyes shining with emotion. He says he is “confident” and “calm” about Gasperini’s permanence. After the second of Lookman’s three goals “I thought ‘this time maybe we can do it’. Such a great result for such an important goal is unexpected – he adds – Atalanta is in history. The beauty of it is to see the club grow every year and the players understood it too.” “I’m very, very happy. Tonight we wrote history, we all did it together. The trophy will return with us to Bergamo, it’s incredible.”
Lookman, who scored a hat-trick against the Germans, was the best performer of the match: “This is the club’s ambition. Last year we had a great season and qualified for Europe. Now we have won a trophy together to the coach. There was a fantastic contribution from everyone and tonight we celebrate.”
