Three in thirty: Atalanta see off Venezia 3-1

With three goals in the opening half-hour, Atalanta secured a 3-1 victory over Venezia on Matchday 6 of the 2026/27 Serie A Enilive campaign at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo.

The Nerazzurri come flying out of the blocks and broke the deadlock after just four minutes: Krstović threaded a perfectly weighted pass through to Kessie, who delicately lifted the ball over the onrushing Stankovic to make it 1-0. Just two minutes later, Atalanta doubled their lead: Krstović timed his run to perfection to meet Elmas' corner with a header into the net, adding his name to the scoresheet after providing the assist for the opener. In the 9th minute, De Ketelaere tested Stankovic with a powerful but central left-footed effort, forcing the goalkeeper into a save. On 19 minutes, Halhal made a goal-line clearance to keep Kessie's goal-bound curler out. The Nerazzurri added a third on the half-hour mark: Bellanova won possession in midfield with a brilliant piece of play before setting up Rowe, whose effort was parried by Stankovic into the path of Krstović, who was on hand to complete his brace. Venezia pulled one back through Hainaut in the 37th minute.

Early in the second half, Venezia threatened through Adams, whose header took a deflection off Kristensen before rattling the crossbar. Then, in the 56th minute, Yeboah unleashed a powerful effort that struck the post. The Nerazzurri responded through Krstović, whose angled drive forced Stankovic into a low save one minute later. Nikola neared the hat-trick in the 62nd minute, heading Bellanova's cross narrowly wide of the post. Shortly afterwards, Carnesecchi did well to deny Yeboah from close range, preserving Atalanta's two-goal lead. At the other end, Stankovic was then called into action twice in quick succession, turning efforts from Elmas and Kristensen behind for corners. In the 82nd minute, Krstović tried his luck again after being set up by Bernasconi, but Stankovic gathered his effort at ground level. At the other end, Adams failed to hit the target with a downward header from Yeboah's corner. The Nerazzurri were reduced to ten men in the 89th minute after Elmas was sent off for a foul on Helgason following a VAR review, but the scoreline remained unchanged. With this victory, Atalanta moved up to nine points in the standings.

ATALANTA 3-1 VENEZIA

Scorers: Kessie 4 (A), Krstović 6, 31 (A), Hainaut 37 (V)

Atalanta: Carnesecchi, Rowe (Zalewski 76), Éderson, Bellanova (Bernasconi 67), De Ketelaere (Samardžić 60), Kessie (Gaetano 76), Kristensen, Scalvini (Kolašinac 67), Zappacosta, Krstović, Elmas. Unused bench: Sonzogni, Sportiello, Pašalić, Scamacca, Raspadori, Obrić, Idele. Coach: Maurizio Sarri.

Venezia Stankovic, Moreno (Schingtienne 83), Yeboah, Correia (Sagrado 7), Juan Jesus, Hainaut, Sohm (Rrahmani 87), Halhal, Basic (Helgason 83), Adams (Lauberbach 83), Perez. Unused bench: Montipò, Haps, Fanne, Mohammed, Dagasso, Berardi, Panada, Lisman, Fernandez, Gomes Furtado. Coach: Giovanni Stroppa.

Referee: Paride Tremolada from Monza;
Assistant referees: Mattia Regattieri from Finale Emilia and Lorenzo Giuggioli from Grosseto;
Fourth official: Giovanni Ayroldi from Molfetta;
V.A.R.: Francesco Meraviglia from Prato;
A.V.A.R.: Marco Piccinini from Forlì.

Notes: Stoppage time: 1 minute (1st half), 4 minutes (2nd half). Straight red card to Elmas (A) on 89 minutes; Moreno (V), Juan Jesus (V) booked