Palladino shows bloodstained bandage in dressing room speech after Atalanta’s UCL feat | OneFootball

Nikola Krstovic won a stoppage-time penalty for Atalanta against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday and coach Raffaele Palladino urged his players to give him a ‘huge round of applause’ as he held up a bloodstained bandage used to stop the striker’s bleeding.

Atalanta are the only Serie A side to have qualified for the Champions League Round of 16, having eliminated Borussia Dortmund from the knockout play-off with a 4-3 aggregate win.

Palladino’s dressing room speech after historic Atalanta win

BERGAMO, ITALY – FEBRUARY 25: Lazar Samardzic of Atalanta scores his team’s fourth goal from the penalty spot during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Knockout Play-off Second Leg match between Atalanta BC and Borussia Dortmund at Stadio di Bergamo on February 25, 2026 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

La Dea earned a late penalty last night when Ramy Bensebaini clumsily kicked Krstovic in the head, and Atalanta coach Palladino praised his striker in the dressing room after the match.

A video posted by Atalanta on Instagram shows Palladino addressing the team while showing a bloodstained bandage Krstovic used to stop the bleeding.

“Let’s give a huge round of applause, come on, give it to him, to a player who, look at this, threw himself at the very last ball, Krstovic, and won us a penalty,” Palladino said in the presence of Luca and Antonio Percassi.

The striker himself also took to social media to show the consequences of Bensebaini’s reckless kick. However, inevitably, the ex-Lecce striker still appeared to be in a good mood after a memorable evening in Bergamo.

Atalanta will face Arsenal or Bayern Munich in the Round of 16 and will learn their next opponent during a draw taking place tomorrow.