Atalanta v Roma: the brainteaser

Déjà vu? A full 365 days since their last clash, Atalanta and Roma are bound to cross paths once again at the Gewiss Stadium. In the most classic of football cycles, Bergamo will once again stand as the Rubicon on both teams’ quest for European glory: with Monday Night promising to be nothing short of a thrilling showdown of Continental ambitions, the stakes couldn't be higher... With the air crackling with tension and anticipation growing ever more palpable for the last blockbuster clash of the season, brace yourself for the ultimate pre-match quiz! Alea iacta est...

2002/03 Serie A, Atalanta 2-1 Roma, when did Tramezzani score?

Afternoon kick-off at the Atleti Azzurri d'Italia stadium, as Vavassori's Atalanta wrapped up the first half of the campaign by hosting Fabio Capello's Roma on a late January Sunday. Coming flying out of the blocks, the visitors drew first blood in the 9th minutes with Totti, capitalizing on a Montella assist to break the deadlock in Bergamo. Despite the Giallorossi keeping their foor on the gas, the tide turned in the 21st minute when Emerson was sent off for a second booking. Making the man advantage count, Atalanta upped the ante and swarmed the box guarded by former Nerazzurro Pellizzoli by the minute as the half wore on until the stopwatch struck minute 41 and the black-and-blue consistency paid off: tearing down the right flank, Siviglia whipped a cross in for Doni, who side-footed it home to level the score.

After the break, the script wouldn't budge from his tracks: with Roma trying to rally and Atalanta retorting with sharp counters and nearly taking the lead thanks to the Doni–Inacio Pià connection (denide by a standout Pellizzoli, the only thing keeping the Giallorossi defence from the final cave-in).

But the resistance finally broke in the dying minutes courtesy of Tramezzani, who came in for Bellini in the 79th: with Atalanta being awarded a free-kick from deep following a foul on Pinardi, the shot got played short and flicked on to Vavassori's number 40, who rifled it low through the Roma wall, sneaking it at the near post. What about the timing on the jumbotron? 87'

When was the last time Atalanta did the double over Roma?

As of today, Atalanta have pulled off a Serie A double on five occasions. While the first time the Bergamaschi managed to take maximum points from both legs against the Giallorossi dates all the way back to the 1949/50 season (when the black-and-blue outfit grabbed a 1-3 away win in the first leg thanks to a Caprile brace and a Caprile finisher before edging the return match 3-2 at the Brumana courtsy of Sorensen , Busnelli and again Caprile), when did the last back-to-back occurr?

Fast fowarding through the years, we have:

• 1994/95 season: After grabbing a smash-and-grab win at the Olimpico on MD2 (with Vieri converting the matchwinner from the spot), Mondonico's side swept the board at the Atleti Azzurri d'Italia with a climactic comeback win as Pisani and Morfeo (penalty) overturned Delvecchio's opener.
• 2002/03 season: This time, the outcomes were mirrored, with Atalanta winning 2-1 in both legs. While the first-leg scoreline has already been detailed in the first trivium, the reverse saw Doni and Gautieri hit the net, with De Rossi briefly pulling Roma level in between
• 2019/20 season: straight after a strong start on MD5 with a 0-2 win in the capital thanks to goals from Zapata and de Roon, Atalanta made 3 out of 2 in style in Bergamo: upon falling behind to a Džeko opener, ten minutes of sheer Nerazzurri fury saw Palomino and Pašalić flip the script.
• 2022/23 season: And here’s our answer to the original question! Just like the previous occasion, the first leg saw Atalanta snatch all the three points at the Olimpico (with a 0-1 triumph thanks to a Scalvini lone goal) before doubling down and coming full circle in Bergamo with an emphatic 3-1 triumph with goals from Pašalić, Toloi, and Koopmeiners.

What was the outcome of our latest MD36 clash?

This Monday will mark but the second time out of 139 meetings that Atalanta and Roma cross their Serie A paths on MD36. In addition thus to being a rare occurrence, the fixture is made all the more intriguing by two standout clues: one linked to the venue, the other to the date. But before we cut to the chase,Here's some red herrings...

While the 3-1 scoreline was the result of our mist recent meeting played on a Monday (April 24 2023 to be exact), which was previously mentioned, and 4-1 coincided with Atalanta's biggest win against Roma on home premises (or rather wins, having occurred three times, namely in the 1956/57, 2011/12, and 2020/21 seasons); 0-0 has been one of the most frequent outcomes in Bergamo.

So what's the correct answer? Circling back, we were hinting at the two telling signs bringing together Monday's game and our latest Serie A Week 36 matchup with the Giallorossi: first, the stage (the Gewiss Stadium in both cases) and second, and even more striking, the date of the fixture...May 12! After our double tell, ready to connect the dots? We're of course talking about last season's 2-1 win, which saw Atalanta take down Faniele De Rossi's Roma courtesy of a red-hot Charles De Ketelaere.