By Anna Italia
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65% Ball Possession ATALANTA and 35% Ball Possession EMPOLI
Atalanta 2 – 1 Empoli 
74′ Franck Kessié 51′ Levan Mchedlidze
94′ Marco D’Alessandro
Serie A Standing BEFORE the game:
Atalanta, 6th position with 29 points and a positive goal difference of +5
Empoli, 17th position with 14 points and a negative goal difference of -15
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | Goals | DIFF | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Atalanta | 17 | 9 | 2 | 6 | 25:20 | 5 | 29 |
| 17 | Empoli | 17 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 9:24 | -15 | 14 |
Empoli risking big time to go down in the relegation zone. Great victory for Atalanta making their best considering they were losing the game and at the end claming the victory. Atalanta having now a +18 lead over Empoli.
It’s Empoli to open the score in the 51st minute. Forward Levan Mchedlidze defeating Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Sportiello with a left-footed shot in the top left corner. The assist is by Federico Dimarco.
The equalizer goal for the 1-1 arriving in the 74th minute. It’s forward Franck Kessié to level the situation with a right footed shot. The assist is by Alejandro Gomez.
It’s a joyous moment for Atalanta fans to end the year 2016 with a victory. In the agonizing 94th minute, there it is, Marco D’Alessandro giving a great gift to the fans by scoring the winner goal with a right-footed shot in the bottom left corner.
Photo:
Atalanta players celebrating at the end of the game with the fans closing in this way a good year 2016.
Here is ATALANTA official starting lineup by coach
ATALANTA (3-4-1-2): Sportiello; Tolói, Masiello, Zukanović; Conti, Gagliardini, Freuler, Spinazzola; Kurtić; Petagna, Gómez.
Here is EMPOLI official starting lineup by coach Martusciello:
EMPOLI (4-3-1-2): Skorupski; Ćosić, Bellusci, Costa, Dimarco; A. Tello, Dioussé, Büchel; Croce; Marilungo, Mchedlidze.
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Stats BEFORE the game. Top scorer of ATALANTA: Jasmin Kurtic and Franck Kessie with 5 goals each
Top scorer of EMPOLI: Maccarone, Mchedlidze, and Saponara with 2 goals each
| ATALANTA | GOALS | GOALS | EMPOLI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kurtic, Jasmin | 5 | 2 | Maccarone, Massimo |
| Kessie, Franck | 5 | 2 | Mchedlidze, Levan |
| Caldara, Mattia | 3 | 2 | Saponara, Riccardo |
| Petagna, Andrea | 3 | 1 | Pucciarelli, Manuel |
| Masiello, Andrea | 3 | 1 | Bellusci, Giuseppe |
Stats. Here are the last 3 games of ATALANTA: 1 draw, 2 lost
| 17/12/16 | SA | Milan – Atalanta | 0:0 | 17 | |||
| 11/12/16 | SA | Atalanta – Udinese | 1:3 | 16 | |||
| 03/12/16 | SA | Juventus – Atalanta | 3:1 | 15 |
Here are the last 3 games of EMPOLI: 1 win, 1 draw, 1 lost
| 17/12/16 | SA | Empoli – Cagliari | 2:0 | 17 | |||
| 11/12/16 | SA | Bologna – Empoli | 0:0 | 16 | |||
| 04/12/16 | SA | Sassuolo – Empoli | 3:0 | 15 |
Atalanta and Empoli lineups before the game.
Photo: facebook.com/atalantabc
2016 – 2017 Italian Serie A Week 18
Atalanta 2 – 1 Empoli
Tuesday 20 December 2016
Atleti Azzurri D’ItaliaStadium
Bergamo, Italy
20:45
Referee: FABBRI
Assistants: MONDIN – LONGO
Fourth Official: TOLFO
ADD1: DOVERI
ADD2: MARTINELLI
Goals: 51′ Levan Mchedlidze (E), 74′ Franck Kessié (A), 94′ Marco D’Alessandro (A)
Official lineups – formations:
ATALANTA (3-4-1-2): Sportiello; Tolói, Masiello, Zukanović; Conti, Gagliardini, Freuler, Spinazzola; Kurtić; Petagna, Gómez.
Subs: Bassi, Mazzini, Caldara, Konko, Dramé, Raimondi, Migliaccio, Kessié, Grassi, D’Alessandro, Cabezas, Pešić.
Coach: Gasperini.
EMPOLI (4-3-1-2): Skorupski; Ćosić, Bellusci, Costa, Dimarco; A. Tello, Dioussé, Büchel; Croce; Marilungo, Mchedlidze.
Subs: Pugliesi, Pelagotti, Veseli, Seminara, Carradori, Giampà, Maiello, Mauri, Pereira, Maccarone, Gilardino, Pucciarelli.
Coach: Martusciello.