Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini was left with a mixture of regret and pride in his team after two late goals by Paris Saint-Germain ended the Italian club’s dream.
The Bergamo club were moments away from a place in the last four in their first season in Europe’s elite club competition before French champions struck twice to grab a 2-1 victory.
‘There is a great sense of regret.It seemed we were going to do it and that would have been a great achievement,’ said Gasperini, whose side had taken a first-half lead.
Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini was left with a mixture of regret and pride in his team
‘We still have (the memory of) a Champions League where we have grown as a team against some of the greats of Europe and I can’t do anything other than thank my lads,’ he added.
A beautiful curling shot from Mario Pasalic in the 27th minute had put Atalanta ahead and they held out until the 90th minute when Brazilian defender Marquinhos equalised and substitute Eric Choupo-Moting added the decisive blow in stoppage time.
‘There was not long to go and it seemed we had done it but when you play against some of the strongest in the world at a technical and athletic level then it becomes tough,’ said Gasperini, whose side were on the back foot after Kylian Mbappe, on the bench due to an ankle injury, came on in the 60th minute.
Kylian Mbappe helped inspire a late comeback for PSG after he came off the bench in Lisbon
‘The introduction of Mbappe was decisive but we did everything that we were looking to do, going toe-to-toe with them.It is hard to do more than that,’ added Gasperini, who said his team would learn a painful lesson from the defeat.
‘The Champions League is a special competition – it is the competition of details and the details are those that determine things when it is a tight game.
‘On set pieces, where we were strong and prepared, there was the opportunity for (Berat) Djimsiti and some counter-attacks where we could have done better, but they are details,’ he said.
The Frenchman set up the winning goal for substitute Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (right)
While the game took place behind closed doors without any fans, Gasperini said he had noticed that some of his team’s supporters had travelled to the Estadio da Luz to greet them.
‘Outside the stadium there were many people from Bergamo and the people of Bergamo still celebrate for the sense of belonging we have and because they saw the team give everything with enthusiasm and passion.
‘We are happy all the same and next year we will restart to improve.I mean improve in our game because in terms of results it is tricky’.
Marquinhos (right) fired a scruffy effort into the net with the help of a fortunate deflection