“Ilicic had coronavirus and suffered a lot, fell into depression. The head comes a moment that explodes you. Luckily he recovered and is fine, it is very important to us “. Thus explained the Papuan Gómez last October in TyC Sports what happened to his partner. Much had been said and rumored about the long absence of Josip Ilicic (32 years). For the personal problems that kept him off the pitch, a reason had been sought and the Papuan he finally verbalized it officially. Fortunately, the shadow of depression is now a thing of the past.
Now, month and a half after its return to green (in a 4-1 loss to Napoli on October 17), the Slovenian alternates starting positions with substitutions and little by little he recovers his tone that made him crush Valencia in the last Champions League, poker at Mestalla through. It is true that he has only managed to see the door on one occasion, but it was somewhat fundamental and recent: He advanced the DEA to pass, of course, the Papuan, in his visit to Anfield and cemented the final triumph (0-2). The powerful offensive arsenal that Atalanta has, as well as the obvious adaptation period necessary to return to the rhythm of the competition, have not yet returned the undisputed poster, (averages 62 minutes in the 9 games in which it has participated), but he is on the right track.
And a new accolade for the virtuous attacker came this December 1, when UEFA announced the best 50 players of the year, candidates for the 'Team of the Year'. List in which Josip Ilicic could not be missing who, despite the final break, finished the season with 21 goals and 9 assists. Numbers that made him command Gasperini's team both in Serie A and in Europe and form a fundamental part in the rise to the European elite of a team that has abandoned the surprise poster based on perseverance and attacking football.
Numbers apart (as we say he has only scored a goal, to which he adds an assist), lThe regularity Ilicic has shown since he was deemed ready to wear court again is the best of the news. His presence in the team is no longer news and good performances are no surprise. The next objective is to recover the incisive Ilicic of the 2019-20, Atalanta needs it if they want to continue fighting with the greats of Europe and Italy and be definitely a perennial reality. But what really matters is that the 'X file' is already on file.