Marino Pušić: "We know Atalanta's weaknesses"

Head coach of Shakhtar Donetsk Marino Pušić has told what he expects from his team's match against Italian side Atalanta in the 2nd leg of the Champions League main stage.

"Our opponent is the winner of the UEFA Europa League, a very strong team, one of the best in Europe according to last season's results, and it demonstrates this on the European stage, at the Champions League level. Of course, they have a specific way of playing - they press very hard in certain areas of the field. We all know how the opponent puts pressure on the opponents, makes them do their best.

We know Atalanta's strengths, but we also know their weaknesses. And I can say that it will be a very serious game. Every game against Atalanta is not easy. But we are here to play such matches against such opponents. This game will require a lot from us, but we are ready to give a lot to do well in this tournament.

I think the match will be interesting. We will have to put in a lot of effort in different aspects of the game. The opponent knows us, we know them, so it will be quite interesting. "Atalanta knows that we are trying to build our game from the depths, and I know that our opponent will be pressing high. It will be a battle of tactics. This is not the kind of opponent we play against in the UPL: most of the matches we play against slightly different teams, so we need to show a little bit different qualities there. But it will be a great experience for us, and we will also take into account our experience from the match with Bologna (0:0, 1st round of the main stage of the Champions League - ed.)," said Pušić at the pre-match press conference.