Muriel and Atalanta to Europa League quarter-finals

With two clever moves, Argentine goalkeeper Juan Musso stopped Bayer Leverkusen’s attempts to come back from behind Atalanta, who withstood the German side’s attacks and won 1-0 thanks to a goal in added time by Jérémie Boga that gave him the opportunity to take the lead. pass from the Italian. team to the quarter-finals of the Europa League after a 3-2 victory in the first leg.

Musso became the man of the match. He didn’t have to intervene often. In fact, only a few needed to be used thoroughly. One in every part and for the same man, Moussa Diaby, who will dream of the South American goalkeeper. Especially with a one-on-one in the second act where Musso got in the way of what would have been a tie against Bayer Leverkusen.

And it is that, with some significant casualties, the German team had to make a comeback open to anything. The attacking philosophy of both teams predicted a game full of alternatives like the first leg, albeit without a few key protagonists for the men led by Gerardo Seoane.

Just when they were needed most, two of their biggest men said goodbye to the rest of the season after getting injured this week. In particular, the loss of Bayer Leverkusen’s helm, Florian Wirtz, made the German team’s chances of reaching the quarter-finals very moving.

Without Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen lost their beacon, one of the young prospects of European football who has already shown at the age of 18 that he can become a top figure. In Transfermarkt, a portal specialized in player evaluation, it even reaches 70 million euros.

But Dutchman Jeremie Frimpong also went without playing, the other casualty for the rest of the Bayer Leverkusen course after falling this week. Both joined in the absences of Julien Baumgartlinger, Ivorian Odilon Kossounou and Czech striker Patrick Schick, already known victims and who also withdrew from the German team.

On the other hand, Atalanta did not fall short. Josip Ilicic has not played since the beginning of January due to depression; and since February, Duván Zapata has been out due to a muscle injury.

With this scenario, Bayer Leverkusen entrusted Kerem Demirbay as a guide to replace Wirtz. And in Atalanta, just like in the first leg, Luis Muriel was responsible for marking the ground in the attacking area. The Colombian’s goal, to repeat his demonstration of the first leg, in which he signed a double and provided an assist.

While Demirbay couldn’t match Wirtz, Muriel was a constant nuisance during his time on the field. Every ball he touched was a danger to Leverkusen. He always chose the best option. Vertical, fast and very dangerous in the counter-attack, he only lacked the confidence of his teammates, who on several occasions did not accompany Muriel’s plays, always alone at the height of the moment.

During the opening act, Leverkusen only had to worry about supporting the Colombian striker. And he got it. However, when creating chances, he got stuck. He lost his way without Wirtz, but Diaby managed to give his side the lead with a shot from the area saved by Argentine goalkeeper Juan Musso.

Both were the same protagonists of the clearest opportunity of the second half, with Leverkusen coming out much stronger than Atalanta. Moussa, this time in a very clear one-on-one, again collided with the wall Musso, who, with Muriel’s permission, put up the decisive man’s poster for the Italian team.

And it is that, if thanks to Muriel Atalanta took a juicy advantage in the first leg, Mussa was the one who brought the income of the team led by Gian Piero Gasperini. The Italian team struck in the opening ninety minutes and successfully crumpled in the seconds to ‘kill’ Leverkusen in a counter-attack that Boga didn’t miss.

Therefore, for the second time in their history, they are in the quarter-finals of the Europa League: in the 1990/91 edition, they reached that round in the Uefa Cup. Then Inter crossed his path to end a dream he hopes will not end before his time, like 31 years ago.