Looking for Atalanta’s next centre-back – data analysis

Atalanta turned out to be one of the 2019/20 season surprises, not only in Serie A, where they conquered the third place but also in UEFA Champions League where they unexpectedly reached the quarterfinals and were close to disqualifying Paris Saint-Germain out of the competition.

Going down from 1-0 to 1-2 in the last couple of minutes of the game against PSG didn’t manage to overshadow their achievement but it did underline the defensive vulnerabilities that were evident throughout the whole campaign.

Whilst they became record breakers when it comes to goals scored for one season in Serie A, their three-man defensive line had some struggles keeping up with the astonishing attacking performance.

Despite being considerably solid for a team playing with a back-three, their defensive mistakes, particularly when it comes to closing out space, are the reason for achieving even better results.

While the team has built a strong connection between the lines and their defenders are rather solid, Atalanta lack depth at the centre-back position, which has proved crucial in times of exhaustion and injuries.

In this recruitment analysis, we will use data analysis to find a suitable centre-back option for Gian Piero Gasperini’s strategy. We will then analyse the best three proposals and explain how they could fit the team’s tactics.

Defensive performance and current squad

Before diving into their current centre-back options, it is important to point out Atalanta’s most frequent defensive mistakes. The team are vulnerable when defending against teams that match their attacking strategy. Their actions during defensive transitions are not always accurate, especially when it comes to closing out space and covering the attackers properly.

They often struggle defending against teams that overcommit players to the attack and use skilful players for short pass combinations in the advanced areas. The reasons for this are two: failing to avoid individual errors and lacking spatial awareness when aggressively pressed.

Despite having five central defenders in the squad, Gasperini relies heavily on three of them who are his regular starters both in Serie A and Champions League. Berat Djimsiti, José Luis Palomino and Rafael Tolói have proved as the best fits for the team’s current strategy, while Mattia Caldara and Boško Šutalo serve as plan B options.

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