Atalanta held by Genoa as top-four ambitions fade
Atalanta were held to a 0-0 draw by Genoa on Sunday to leave them trailing the Serie A top four by eight points.
Fourth-placed Juventus's 3-1 win at Sampdoria on Saturday put the pressure on Atalanta to keep pace in the race for the Champions League qualification spots, and a home game against 19th-placed Genoa seemed a gift.
However, other than Luis Muriel's first-half effort that clipped the outside of the post, Atalanta struggled to break down a determined Genoa.
The visitors started to create chances of their own with fresh legs off the bench, with Mattia Destro drilling just wide, but they could not find a winner and settled for a deserved point.
While Atalanta have played one game fewer than Juventus, the fact that they have achieved just one win in seven Serie A matches has left them with a mountain to climb to secure Champions League football for next season.
Genoa remain six points from safety after a seventh successive Serie A draw.
In Udine, a last-gasp Lorenzo Pellegrini penalty rescued Jose Mourinho's AS Roma in a 1-1 draw with Udinese and they moved level on points with Atalanta, while Fiorentina beat Bologna 1-0.
Game Information
Italian Serie A Standings
Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Internazionale | 33 | 27 | 5 | 1 | +61 | 86 |
AC Milan | 33 | 21 | 6 | 6 | +25 | 69 |
Juventus | 33 | 18 | 10 | 5 | +21 | 64 |
Bologna | 33 | 17 | 11 | 5 | +22 | 62 |
AS Roma | 33 | 17 | 7 | 9 | +20 | 58 |
Atalanta | 32 | 16 | 6 | 10 | +22 | 54 |
Lazio | 33 | 16 | 4 | 13 | +7 | 52 |
Napoli | 33 | 13 | 10 | 10 | +9 | 49 |
Fiorentina | 32 | 13 | 8 | 11 | +9 | 47 |
Torino | 33 | 11 | 13 | 9 | +2 | 46 |
Monza | 33 | 11 | 10 | 12 | -8 | 43 |
Genoa | 33 | 9 | 12 | 12 | -5 | 39 |
Lecce | 33 | 8 | 11 | 14 | -18 | 35 |
Cagliari | 33 | 7 | 11 | 15 | -20 | 32 |
Hellas Verona | 33 | 7 | 10 | 16 | -13 | 31 |
Empoli | 33 | 8 | 7 | 18 | -22 | 31 |
Udinese | 33 | 4 | 16 | 13 | -19 | 28 |
Frosinone | 33 | 6 | 10 | 17 | -23 | 28 |
Sassuolo | 33 | 6 | 8 | 19 | -26 | 26 |
Salernitana | 33 | 2 | 9 | 22 | -44 | 15 |