Grazie mille!

Salzburg later in CL qualifiers thanks to Atalanta!

Grazie mille, Atalanta Bergamo!(Bild: GEPA)

Atalanta Bergamo have spared runners-up Red Bull Salzburg a round in the Champions League qualifiers! Because the Europa League winners will finish the national league in third or fourth place after a 3-0 home win against Torino on Sunday, the Salzburg team will have to wait until the third of four qualifying rounds in the summer rather than the second. 

If Atalanta had only finished fifth, Serie A sixth-placed AS Roma would also have played in the top flight. Instead of six tickets for Italy, Portugal's runners-up Benfica Lisbon now have a place in the Champions League.

However, their opponents are not easy
Salzburg moves up in the qualifiers. As league runners-up, the Bulls should have entered the second round of the league stage at the end of July (July 23/24 and 30/31). This is now only the case on August 6/7 and 13 - i.e. after the start of the Bundesliga on the first weekend in August. However, the opponents are not easy, as the champions from smaller leagues take a different route into the restructured group stage.

Atalanta left nothing to be desired against Torino. Goals from Gianluca Scamacca (26'), Europa League final hero Ademola Lookman (43') and Mario Pasalic (71' / penalty) ensured a clear result. Ex-Salzburg player Valentino Lazaro was substituted for Torino in the closing stages (72'). SSC Napoli's small hopes of reaching the European Cup are finally over. Last year's dethroned champions finished tenth in the Serie A table after a 0-0 draw at home to Lecce.