DBasia.news – Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini called the international friendly match useless after discovering the fact that the club’s top scorer Duvan Zapata was injured after defending the Colombian national team a week ago.
Zapata is expected to be out for three weeks, including next week’s Champions League match against host Manchester City, after an abductor muscle injury that forced him off the field during the 0-0 draw against Chile in Alicante, Spain.
“I did react violently,” Gasperini said.
“It’s not at all useful to go around the world and play aimless friendlies, the players fall victim to a 12 to 13-day tour wave, and nothing is at stake. We then complain about the increasing number of injuries,” he said.
“Some of the games are not watched, games like this are useless, both from a technical-tactical point of view and from an entertainment point of view,” Gasperini continued.