Qualifying for the Champions League is the maximum target for Atalanta, we can't exactly try to challenge for the Scudetto. Maybe one day Atalanta could, as the club has a radiant future," Gasperini told Sky Italia, reflecting on their looming Europa League final appearance.
As far as we are concerned, Champions League qualification is an extraordinary result and these lads are going beyond all expectations. I am truly happy with this and we need to dedicate it to everyone in Bergamo.
Undoubtedly, having the reassurance of this qualification will certainly be extra motivation for the players. We had an incredibly hard season with 53 games so far this term, it feels like 30 in the last two months alone.
It was a strain, we lost a few, but we won so many big games including the Coppa Italia at San Siro, against Fiorentina, in Europe with Liverpool and Marseille. The last five Serie A wins in a row gave us a push over the line, so we played many of these knockout ties lately.
We lost the Coppa Italia Final the other day against Juventus and it was the first time I saw a lack of pace and adrenaline in the squad. We were starting to feel the fatigue.
It was warm tonight and I rested many players. We need the best Atalanta in Dublin, in physical, emotional and technical terms.
I am so sad for the absence of Marten De Roon, but he will certainly sit on the bench with me and help. It's a terrible time to get an injury, but we will arrive in Dublin with a clear conscience and the desire to get an extraordinary result for Italy as well as for Atalanta."