Athletic Club overturned a first-half deficit with three goals in 16 second-half minutes to beat Atalanta 3-2 in the Champions League, claiming a rare away victory in Italy and moving up to 23rd in the overall standings ahead of a key meeting with Sporting CP next week.
The result hit Atalanta hard in the table. At one stage Atalanta sat third in the live rankings, but the defeat dropped Atalanta to 13th. Atalanta finished the penultimate matchday level on points with Chelsea, who currently occupy the final automatic last-16 qualifying position.
The match at New Balance Arena started in Atalanta’s favour. With 16 minutes gone, Nicola Zalewski delivered a precise cross from the right side. Gianluca Scamacca rose above Aitor Paredes and directed
a firm header past Unai Simon to give Atalanta an early and deserved lead.
Atalanta continued to create chances after that breakthrough. Lorenzo Bernasconi struck the post, while Unai Simon denied Scamacca with two sharp stops. Scamacca also had another finish disallowed for offside. Charles De Ketelaere later hit the frame of the goal as Atalanta threatened to extend the advantage.
Athletic stayed in contention and then punished Atalanta’s missed chances. Robert Navarro sent a long forward pass into space for Gorka Guruzeta shortly before the hour. Guruzeta broke clear of the defence and finished calmly past Marco Carnesecchi, bringing Athletic level despite having created fewer clear opportunities.
The visitors then struck twice in quick succession. Nico Serrano entered from the bench and soon met a Navarro pass with a clean first-time shot to complete the turnaround. Four minutes later Navarro drove to the edge of the area and drilled a low effort inside the post for 3-1.
Atalanta responded late. With two minutes of normal time remaining, Ademola Lookman headed a cross back across goal. Nikola Krstovic reacted fastest and tapped in from close range, setting up a tense finish. Athletic, however, stayed organised through added time and protected the one-goal lead.
We needed a night like this!#AtalantaAthletic #UniqueInTheWorld pic.twitter.com/5P6HYEABeSAthletic Club (@Athletic_en) January 21, 2026
Navarro produced the decisive individual display. Navarro assisted the first two goals and scored the third, becoming the first Athletic player involved in three or more goals in a major European fixture since Aritz Aduriz achieved the feat against Genk in November 2016, underlining Navarro’s influence on this contest.
| Team | Goals | Shots on target | Expected goals (xG) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atalanta | 2 | – | 1.99 |
| Athletic Club | 3 | 3 | 1.74 |
Ernesto Valverde’s side scored with all three shots on target and finished with an expected goals figure of 1.74, compared with 1.99 for Atalanta. After resisting Atalanta’s pressure, Athletic collected only the second European away victory against Italian opposition in club history, following a UEFA Cup win at Sampdoria in 1997-98.
