Atalanta Bergamo lost 1-2 at home to Cagliari in Serie A on Saturday, with Poland international Nicola Zalewski left out of the squad's action entirely for the first time this season under coach Maurizio Sarri.
Zalewski has struggled for game time since the campaign began. He started only in the opening round against Sassuolo, a match Atalanta won 2-1. He was used only as a substitute in the following games against Bologna, which Atalanta won 1-0, and against AS Roma, which they lost 1-2. Against Cagliari, despite Sarri making four substitutions during the match, Zalewski did not come on at all.
Cagliari Struck First
Atalanta looked the sharper side early on. Gianluca Scamacca had two good chances in the opening minutes, first seeing a shot toward the bottom corner saved by the goalkeeper, then missing a clear opportunity moments later.
Those missed chances proved costly. In the 19th minute, Cagliari broke forward through Michel Adopo, who ran down the wing and squared the ball into the box for Paulo Mendy. The 19-year-old struck first time over the goalkeeper, the ball cannoning off the crossbar and into the net to put the visitors ahead.
Cagliari nearly doubled their lead before the break when Daniel Maldini tried his luck from distance, narrowly missing the target. Atalanta created more chances but lacked precision until the 41st minute, when Charles De Ketelaere drove forward through midfield and slipped the ball to Scamacca, who this time found the far post to level the score at 1-1 at halftime.
Penalty Decides the Match
The second half began badly for Sarri's side. Mendy found the net again, squeezing the ball between the goalkeeper's legs, but the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside.
Atalanta survived that scare but not the next one. In the 61st minute, the referee pointed to the penalty spot after Sead Kolasinac handled the ball in the area. Daniel Maldini stepped up and calmly converted to put Cagliari ahead 2-1.
Atalanta could not find a response. Cagliari continued to threaten, and goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi was called into action to deny a shot from Adam Obert. The hosts pushed forward in the 76th minute when Lazar Samardzić fired just wide of the post, and eight minutes later Nikola Krstović headed straight at the goalkeeper without testing him. Atalanta failed to find an equaliser before the final whistle and lost 1-2.
Serie A Standings
The defeat left Atalanta on six points and dropped them to ninth place in the Serie A table. Cagliari moved up to fourth with nine points. Lazio currently leads the standings with 10 points.
Atalanta Bergamo are based in Bergamo, in northern Italy's Lombardy region. Zalewski, a Polish international, has yet to establish himself as a regular starter under Sarri since the start of the season.
