With Fiorentina having only lost one of their last seven matches in this competition – last season’s Coppa Italia final – the hosts would’ve been confident of getting back to winning ways.
Vincenzo Italiano’s side started the game well, dominating possession early on, but they initially struggled to muster a shot to test Marco Carnesecchi in the Atalanta goal, with Giacomo Bonaventura and Lucas Beltran seeing their shots from inside the penalty area blocked by defenders.
Clearly eager to atone for a 2-1 loss to AC Milan that ended a six-match unbeaten run (W2, D4), La Viola weren’t dissuaded, and managed to finally take the lead with just over half an hour played.
The goal came after Nicolás González laid the ball off for Rolando Mandragora, who lined up a thunderous effort from distance that crashed off the inside of the left post and into the top corner to give the home side a vital lead.
The start of the second half went the same way as the first with Atalanta struggling to maintain possession of the ball. And Gian Piero Gasperini’s side were almost punished with just under an hour played, when González lept above the Atalanta defence to head an inviting cross towards the left side of the goal, only for Carnesecchi to produce a superb save to keep the deficit at one goal.
González continued to probe at the Atalanta goal, and they went close again just six minutes later, when he cut inside and fired down the centre of the goal, only to be yet again thwarted by Carnesecchi.
Atalanta went close to levelling the score as the game entered the final 10 minutes, when Gianluca Scamacca received the ball in the penalty area before firing towards the bottom-right corner, but Pietro Terracciano produced a fine save to preserve his side's lead.
The hosts managed to hold on to secure their first clean sheet in seven home games and to secure a valuable one-goal lead heading into the second leg at the Stadio di Bergamo.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Nicolás González (Fiorentina)
