Osamagbe Imadiyi
Tuesday’s 3-1 home loss to Club Brugge in the knockout round play-offs ended Atalanta’s hopes of moving on in the UEFA Champions League, resulting in a 5-2 aggregate exit.
In the 46th minute, Ademola Lookman scored off an assist from Davide Zappacosta to cut the deficit to 3-1, giving the Italian team a glimmer of hope shortly after halftime. But Atalanta was denied a chance to rally when the Nigerian forward missed a vital penalty in the 61st minute.
Club Brugge had dominated the first half, and Ferran Jutglà had helped defender Chadi Riad Talbi score early in the third minute. Just before halftime, Jutglà himself made it 3-0 after Talbi doubled his lead in the 27th minute.
Even though Lookman scored early in the second half, Atalanta was unable to mount a comeback because of the costly missed penalty. Rafael Tolói, the captain, was sent off in the 87th minute as their annoyance reached a boiling point.
Club Brugge persevered to win by a wide margin and advance to the next round.
