Player Profile: Josip Ilicic

Hello everybody and welcome to another post on the Player Profile Series!

As usual, we look at the specifics now,

Team: Atalanta

Position: Centre Forward, Winger, Second Striker 

Age: 32

Height: 190 cm

Preferred Foot: Left

Nationality: Slovenia

Competition Stats:

Goals: 5

Assists: 0

Minutes played: 516

Games played: 7

[stats courtesy of uefa.com]

Another player many people may not know of. I'd understand. But no looking down on this guy, him and his Atalanta team have been the surprise package of this Champions League campaign. They held their own in Group C and managed to tag along with Man City into the round of 16. Coming into the round of 16 is where they've really shown their sparks. Atalanta emphatically took out Valencia from the competition and we didn't get to find out who their next opponent was due to the suspension of football because of the coronavirus. Ilicic played a vital role in Atalanta's games with Valencia which is what's made him make this series.

Notable Performances

VS Valencia, Round of 16 1st leg

Woah. It took Ilicic up to 6 games until he got onto Atalanta's scoresheet. Nonetheless, it came when the team needed it. Not only are Atalanta the surprise package this season, but it's their first ever appearance in the competition, and you have to say, they really made the most of it. Ilicic released one from the locker in this game when he received the ball on the edge of the penalty area and waded himself past Valencia players. He scored with his right foot too. Atalanta won the game 4-1.

That one from the locker

Click here to watch that goal

VS Valencia, Round of 16 2nd leg

To start off, this game was played behind closed doors, as the coronavirus began to spread around Europe. Seats were empty, but the action on the pitch was not. Ilicic won himself a penalty in the third minute and scored the penalty to get the game going. Valencia pulled a goal back but seriously needed more if there were really going to put up a fight. Ilicic put away his second penalty of the night in the forty-third minute, thanks to the referee's use of the VAR and further widened the goal aggregate between both teams. He scored the hattrick in the seventy-third minute ⚽🎩. Ilicic perfectly wrapped the ball with his favorite left foot into the top left corner of the net for his fourth goal in the game. It was a masterclass performance from him 🔥 The game was crazy, filled with goals and ended 3-4 on the night, 4-8 on aggregate.

Old but ice cold

Click here to watch those 4 goals

Final Thoughts

Josip Ilicic pulled through at just the right moment for Atalanta, and I must say, their journey thus far is incredible. The team looked toast in the group stage, you wouldn't even believe they could make it this far. If some fairytale comes true and Atalanta win the Champions League, I'll eat more food than I have to 😂💀 They have been impressive, no doubt. Ilicic has shown his class and for someone that's 32, he can teach youngsters a thing or two. Didn't think he had scored in back to back games this far in the competition, but as I said, his team needed it. Hopefully, when football finds a way to resume, we shall see where Ilicic and Atalanta end up.