Atalanta ended their eight-game Serie A winless run, with Raffaele Palladino sending his former team Fiorentina into deeper turmoil with goals from Odilon Kossounou and Ademola Lookman.
It was Raffaele Palladino’s first home game after a defeat at Napoli and a 3-0 Champions League victory away to Eintracht Frankfurt, and he faced his former team.
The last remaining absentees were Giorgio Scalvini and Mitchel Bakker, with the Viola missing Robin Gosens and Tariq Lamptey.
Paolo Vanoli’s predicament was worsening after he supervised two Serie A draws before Thursday’s 1-0 home loss to AEK Athens in the Conference League, as the squad remains winless domestically.
The Tuscans had a promising start, with Moise Kean breaking the offside trap after four minutes, but Marco Carnesecchi saved both his angled drive and Roberto Piccoli’s follow-up from point-blank range.
David De Gea made a great one-handed save on Charles De Ketelaere’s daisy-cutter from the edge of the box before denying Davide Zappacosta at the near post following an outstanding Ademola Lookman pass.
Carnesecchi denied Piccoli at the near post, and De Gea came down to fingertip a De Ketelaere daisy-cutter around the base of the far post.
Atalanta broke the deadlock with a magnificent goal from Odilon Kossounou, who stroked it first-time into the far top corner from the edge of the box following a De Ketelaere lay-off, but it was most likely intended as a cross by the defender. It remains his career’s first Serie A goal.
Lookman missed a poor De Gea ball, and Kean’s header on a Luca Ranieri cross was too weak to trouble Carnesecchi.
The hosts doubled their lead when De Gea saved De Ketelaere’s header on a corner but could not stop Lookman’s follow-up into the roof of the net.
It was almost 3-0 moments later, as De Gea made another desperate save on Marten de Roon’s header from a Lookman cross.
Dodo launched a quick counterattack after his effort was deflected over, and Gianluca Scamacca cleared Kean’s header off the line.
De Ketelaere also failed to complete a potential single run, but Kean was unlucky to see his glancing header from a Rolando Mandragora free kick hit the far post after 76 minutes.
Sead Kolasinac made his first Serie A appearance of the season after suffering a serious knee injury, and the home fans greeted him warmly.
