Maurizio Sarri's Atalanta opened its Serie A campaign with a resounding 3‑1 win over Venezia at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo, on October 12, 2026. The opening goal was scored by French-Swiss midfielder Franck Kessie, who, just four minutes into the game, took advantage of a pass from Nikola Krstović to place the ball in the area outside the goal and score with a precise mince. With that goal, Kessie began his scoring tally for the season, although the forward has yet to score another.
Krstović was a key player in the victory, since in addition to assisting Kessie, he scored two goals in the first half, in the 7th and 31st minutes. His performance gave him clear dominance in the center of the field and allowed him to control the pace of the match. Venezia, which is in last position in the table and without points after six rounds, was unable to reverse the situation. Antoine Hainaut briefly reduced the lead in the 37th minute, but the Bergamo team could not avoid defeat, which became the sixth in a row for the Venetian club.
Atalanta also suffered a sending off in the 89th minute when Eljif Elmas received a red card, leaving the team with ten players on the field. Despite the numerical disadvantage, the defense and the goalkeeper managed to maintain the final result. The match concluded with Atalanta as the winner, consolidating its position in tenth position in the Serie A table.
On the same day, Torino, which occupies 12th place, beat Udinese (15th) by 2‑1. Daniel Bragança opened the scoring in the 36th minute, and the second goal came in the 67th minute when Sandro Kulenović took advantage of a big foul by Maduka Okoye. The Udinese goalkeeper, trying to clear a long ball, collided with Nicolo Bertola's defense and handed the ball to Kulenović, who controlled it with his chest before scoring into an empty goal. The result leaves Torino with a stronger position in the table, while Udinese continues to fight to avoid the relegation zone.