
Football Manager 2021 Atalanta tactic and team guide. Club culture and
board requirements, tactics, key players, youth prospects and potential
transfers in FM21.
Here is a brief analysis of the Atalanta squad, their club structure, relationship any potential managers will have with the board, expectations and possible tactics any FM21 manager can use.
About the club
Atalanta are a professional football club that ply their trade in Serie A . Interestingly, the club was founded by a few students and their teacher at a gym in Bergamo.
Board Requirements
Atalanta have qualified for the Champion’s League for their first time in their history by finishing 3rd in the league for the 2nd time in a row. The minimum board requirements once you take over should be

1. Qualify for the Euro cup (Top 6 finish)
2. Make the knockout stages of the UEFA Champion’s league
3. Make the QF of the Italian Cup/Coppa Italia.
Additionally, you will be required to play high-tempo pressing football which should be entertaining with an emphasis on building a strong attack. You will be required to develop players using the club’s excellent youth system. You will also be required to look at lower leagues to catch untapped talent.
The youth and training facilities at Atalanta are really good, the youth recruitment is amongst the best in the game and you will learn to heavily rely on this to build a strong squad with Atalanta.
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Squad, Formation and Tactical Style
Atalanta are generally a very attacking team and rely on outscoring opponents. They employ a high pressing fast-paced style of football in real life and it is best to mimic that in the game. A vertical tiki-taka is most suited for their squad of players.
A 3-4-2-1 is probably the best-suited formation to the available squad of players. This is incidentally how they line up in real life as well. This also helps them maintain the width and releasing the ball quickly to counter opponents.
A rough example of what your line-up would look like in a 3-4-2-1 formation is as follows,

Pierluigi Gollini as a regular keeper.
Cristian Romero, Berat Djimsiti & Rafael Toloi as the 3 centre backs. Toloi & Djimsiti can be played as a Ball Playing Defenders.
Hans Hateboer & Robin Gosens as the 2 wing backs. Increased crossing instructions to take advantage of their attacking ability.
Marten De Roon & Remo Freuler as the 2 central midfielders, the former as a box to box midfielder and the latter as a ball-winning midfielder.
Alejandro Gomez as the attacking playmaker who needs to be given a completely free role & Josip Ilicic as an Attacking midfielder.
Duvan Zapata as a lone striker in an Advanced Forward role.
Alternatively, you can deploy a 4-3-3 and play Mario Pasalic as a roaming playmaker and play Papu Gomez as a winger.
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Key Players
1. Alejandro Gomez

Papu Gomez is the captain and the best player of Atalanta. He is very versatile and can operate in multiple positions. His returns up front are crucial in securing results.
2. Duvan Zapata

Zapata is a massive aerial threat and is a beast of a striker. Having scored 43 goals in 70 league games Zapata has been clinical for Atalanta it is crucial you maintain his fitness to get favourable results.
3. Josip Ilicic

Ilicic is extremely versatile and is lethal in front of a goal. He also has the ability to create goals making him a key player for Atalanta.
4. Robin Gosens

The wingback popped up with remarkable 9 league goals last season and is an extreme threat in attack. His height and aerial prowess are an added advantage from set-pieces.
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Weaknesses
2. You run the risk of some talents being poached by other clubs especially in search of higher wages.
3. Being a relatively small club, the wage and transfer budgets are not in par with the other competitors making a top 4 finish very difficult to secure.
Potential Transfers (in)
Atalanta are not the best squad in the league with respect to squad depth, these players could be welcome additions to the side.
· Nikola Milenkovic
· Eric Pulgar
· Rolando Mandragora
Potential Transfers (Out)
These players may be surplus to requirements at the club or may not be of the expected quality.
· Ruslan Malinovskiy
· Alexi Miranchuk
Youth Prospects
1. Davide Bettella

Bettella is one of the best wonderkid defenders in the game and he can go on to become the leader in defence for Atalanta in the future years.
2. Bosko Sutalo

Another promising centre back from the academy, Sutalo is already good enough to be a squad player for Atalanta and will only improve in the future.
3. Roberto Piccoli

Piccoli is a tall striker in the mould of Zapata and can take over from Zapata in the future. He has the potential ability to be even better than Zapata and can be a goal machine for Atalanta.
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Summary
To summarize, Atalanta are a very exciting club to manage for many FM21 Managers but with a few hurdles. Will you be able to hold on to your young stars and build an empire with the club?