Match analysis: 2024 Europa League final Atalanta 3-0 Leverkusen

In this article brought to you by Swissquote, UEFA's Technical Observer Panel together with UEFA's analysis unit analyse how Atalanta used clever defensive positioning and a man-for-man marking strategy to record a 3-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the final of the 2023/24 UEFA Europa League.

Atalanta's man-for-man defensive strategy disrupts Leverkusen's possession 

Gian Piero Gasperini's Atalanta side were crowned winners of the 2023/24 Europa League after an expertly-executed defensive strategy provided the foundation for Ademola Lookman's match-winning hat-trick.

Atalanta's opponents in the final, Leverkusen, have been one of the standout teams in this year's competition. The German side have dismantled many opponents through their dominance of possession, fluid attacking movement and incisive counterattacking play. However, Atalanta's disciplined and co-ordinated man-for-man defensive strategy proved too difficult for Xabi Alonso's side to overcome.

Throughout this season's Europa League campaign, Atalanta have adopted a man-for-man defensive strategy with players 'locking on' to their opponents in all areas of the pitch. Here, in the final, we see how Atalanta's aggressive approach restricts Leverkusen's options to build play from the back and prevents the preferred connection through the midfield pairing of Granit Xhaka and Exequiel Palacios. When Leverkusen did play more directly into their front players, Atalanta's back line were quick to intercept forward passes. Gasperini's side also recovered quickly and were aggressive when competing for the ball in 1v1 duels.

To apply individual pressure on Leverkusen's defenders, Atalanta took the risk of playing 1v1 on their back line. The clips above highlight the large spaces the Italians were willing to vacate in order to stay with their opponent. Atalanta's approach is in contrast to many popular defensive systems that involve cover and support providing by a spare defender.

To implement this approach, Atalanta's defenders are comfortable leaving the back line and following opponents into their own half. In the clips above, we see Isak Hien, the central defender of Atalanta's back three, following Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz deep into his own half before pinching the ball.

Intelligent reading of the game allows Atalanta to press and cover space

UEFA's Technical Observer Panel highlighted how quick combination play and intelligent running off the ball can counter a man-for-man approach. In the opening stages of the first half, Leverkusen managed to do so on occasion. However, through clever reading of the game the Italian side were able to both apply pressure to the man on the ball whilst also being ready to protect the space behind them.

In the video above, we see how Atalanta defenders Sead Kolašinac and Matteo Ruggeri deal with the attacking threat posed by Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong. Both Kolašinac and Ruggeri can be seen applying pressure to their opponent whilst also orientating their body towards the space behind them. By doing so, they succeed in both discouraging passes to Frimpong's feet and being in an effective position to win the race if a ball is played behind them.

With the increasing importance of 1v1 defending at the highest levels of the game, young players should be exposed to individual defensive detail as part of youth development programmes at the appropriate age and stage of learning.

Lookman provides ruthless finishing to reward Atalanta's defensive work 

Atalanta's defensive discipline, organisation and aggression was rewarded through a display of ruthless finishing from Lookman. The former Everton and Leipzig forward demonstrated the importance of developing a variety of finishing techniques with his eye-catching hat-trick.

For his first goal, Lookman identifies the space created by Charles De Ketelaere in the penalty area before running on the blindside of Leverkusen's Palacios to produce a first-time finish with his left foot. The 26 year-old's second goal showcases his ability to shoot effectively with both feet. This time the attacker fakes to go to Xhaka's left before cutting inside to dispatch a clinical finish with his right foot.

Lookman's ability to keep a defender guessing which side he will attack was again demonstrated with his third goal. After being fed the ball from Gianluca Scamacca, who had been afforded time and space in the centre of the pitch, Lookman first shows to attack on the inside of the defender before producing a stepover and finishing with his left.