Sunday, October 23, 2022

Artemio Franchi Stadium, Florence

Halftime - Away Dressing Room

The away dressing room was controlled but tense as players sat on benches with water bottles in hand and sweat cooling on their skin, and the noise from outside—fifty-five thousand Fiorentina supporters celebrating their lead—filtered through the walls in muffled waves while Atalanta's squad processed the first forty-five minutes in relative silence.

Gasperini stood near the tactical board without touching it yet, and he waited while the noise outside gradually died down and his players finished their immediate recovery routines—towels wiped across faces, boots retied, shin guards adjusted—and when the room finally settled into focused quiet he began speaking.

"Spacing," Gasperini said, and his voice carried instructional clarity without anger. "Fiorentina's midfield is winning second balls because we're arriving too late in the half-spaces. When the ball breaks loose, they react first. That needs to change."

He paused and looked around the room, making brief eye contact with several players before continuing. "The goal didn't come from brilliance. It came from hesitation and poor positioning. Hateboer caught too narrow, Lookman's clearance rushed. Those mistakes get punished at this level."

His eyes found Demien briefly, and the look wasn't criticism—just instruction delivered with the same measured tone he'd used for everything else.

"Walter. Start receiving wider when they press centrally. Pull their holding midfielder out of position, create space for others. And release the ball earlier when options exist—don't wait for perfect, take good."

Demien nodded once. "Understood."

Gasperini moved on immediately without dwelling on it, and his assistant coach stepped forward with the tactical board and began reinforcing pressing triggers on Fiorentina's left side—when to engage, when to drop off, how to force them into areas where Atalanta could win possession.

Players nodded as instructions were delivered, and the message was clear without needing to be stated explicitly: the game was still there, forty-five minutes remained, and one goal down wasn't insurmountable if they executed properly.

Fiorentina Dressing Room

The home dressing room carried a different energy as Fiorentina's players sat with satisfied expressions while their coach stood at the center reviewing the first half, and confidence filled the space without crossing into arrogance because they understood Atalanta would adjust.

"You've been good," their coach said. "But not ruthless. We create chances, we dominate possession, but one-nil isn't safe. I want the second goal early in this half."

Jović leaned back against his locker with a slight smile and said, "Just keep sending me service and I'll finish it," and a few teammates laughed while the striker's confidence was genuine rather than cocky.

Adriano listened quietly from his spot near the corner, and he took a long drink from his water bottle while his expression stayed focused, and when the coach's eyes found him briefly the wonderkid nodded acknowledgment of what was coming next.

"Atalanta will adjust," the coach continued. "They'll press higher, they'll try to force mistakes. Don't drop too deep when we have the lead. Keep your shape, stay aggressive, make them chase the ball."

The message registered across the room, and when the physio called out that five minutes remained before the restart, players began standing and pulling on fresh shirts while the atmosphere stayed controlled and confident.

Second Half - Artemio Franchi

Commentary Booth

"Welcome back to the Artemio Franchi for the second half," the lead commentator said as both teams emerged from the tunnel. "Fiorentina lead one-nil through Jović's header, but Atalanta had chances late in the first half. This is still very much alive."

"Key for Gasperini will be whether his adjustments take effect," his colleague added. "Fiorentina dominated the first half, but you sense Atalanta are still in this. Forty-five minutes to find an equalizer."

The teams took their positions while the crowd noise built to a crescendo, and the referee checked both captains before raising the whistle to his lips.

Fweeeeeetttttttt!!!!!

The whistle's blast signaled the restart and Atalanta kicked off with the ball going backward immediately, and Fiorentina's front three pressed forward with the same intensity they'd shown in the first half while the home crowd's noise sustained its energy from the opening seconds.

Fiorentina were on the front foot within minutes as their pressing forced Atalanta into a hurried clearance that fell to Bonaventura near the halfway line, and the veteran midfielder controlled it before playing wide to their right winger who had space to attack.

The winger accelerated down the touchline with Maehle tracking his movement, and when he reached the edge of the penalty area his cross came low and hard toward the six-yard box where bodies converged, and Tolói slid in at full stretch with his leg extended, and the ball deflected just wide of the near post by inches.

The home crowd groaned collectively as the chance went unconverted, and scattered applause acknowledged the defensive intervention while the corner was prepared.

Commentary Booth

"What a block from Tolói!" the commentator exclaimed. "That cross was dangerous and Atalanta's center-back puts his body on the line. Fine margins in this match."

The corner delivery came toward the back post where bodies jumped in congested space, but Musso rose above everyone and punched the ball clear with both fists, and it dropped near the edge of the box where Adriano was positioned.

The Fiorentina wonderkid controlled it instantly with his first touch as pressure arrived from Koopmeiners, and he spun away from the challenge with a sharp turn that created half a yard of space, and his shot came immediately—right foot striking cleanly from twenty yards out toward the bottom corner.

Musso reacted quickly and dove to his right, and his hands reached the ball and pushed it away from goal before it could find the target, and the save drew applause from the away section while Fiorentina's players raised their hands appealing for a corner that the referee waved away.

The crowd erupted anyway because the quality of Adriano's technique was undeniable—the turn, the shot, the confidence—and the commentators picked it up immediately.

"Adriano Ventresca again!" the co-commentator said. "Still the most influential player on the pitch. That turn under pressure, the immediate shot—Musso forced into another save."

Atalanta slowly regained control as the half progressed, and Gasperini's halftime instructions began showing results as their shape adjusted.

Hateboer started pushing higher down the right flank, and his positioning pinned Fiorentina's left winger back toward their own defensive third, and the tactical shift created more space centrally where Atalanta's midfield could operate.

Demien began finding more room by drifting into the right half-space instead of staying central between Fiorentina's lines, and when he received from De Roon at fifty-three minutes his first touch was cleaner and his decision-making quicker.

A simple one-two with Lookman broke Fiorentina's first line of pressure—Demien's pass forward, Lookman's return ball into space, Demien's acceleration past Mandragora's challenge—and when Amrabat stepped across to close him down the foul came immediately, and the referee's whistle stopped play.

The free kick was thirty yards from goal in a non-dangerous position, but the sequence had been effective in establishing Atalanta's improved rhythm, and Demien stood over the ball briefly before playing it short to Koopmeiners who circulated possession backward.

Not flashy, but effective in slowing Fiorentina's momentum and allowing Atalanta to reset their shape.

Around the hour mark, Fiorentina nearly doubled their lead.

A turnover in midfield came when Malinovskyi's touch was too heavy and the ball broke to Bonaventura, and Fiorentina's transition was immediate as the veteran played it forward to Adriano who had already started his run.

Adriano's first touch was forward into space, and his second released Jović with a perfectly weighted through ball that split Atalanta's defensive line, and suddenly the Serbian striker was through on goal with only Musso to beat.

Jović took one touch to set himself as Musso charged off his line, and the striker's shot came with his right foot aimed low toward the corner, but the Italian goalkeeper stood tall and spread himself wide, and the ball struck his legs and deflected away for a corner while the stadium gasped collectively.

Gasperini's voice cut across the pitch from the touchline, sharp and demanding. "CALM! STAY COMPACT! DON'T PANIC!"

The away bench had risen instinctively when the chance developed, and they settled back down slowly while exchanging glances because the margin between one-nil and two-nil had been measured in inches.

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