'The mythical goddess!' - Italian press hail miracle of Atalanta's UCL heroics

Atalanta were hailed as a 'mythical goddess' by La Gazzetta dello Sport as the Italian press lavished praise on the club for reaching the Champions League last 16.

Wednesday night's 3-0 victory away against Shakhtar Donetsk capped a remarkable turnaround for Gian Piero Gasperini's side after they lost the opening three games of the group stage.

In the the club's first campaign at Europe's top table, Atalanta finished ahead of the Ukrainian side and Dinamo Zagreb to reach the knockout stage.

With Inter Milan bowing out, Atalanta joined Juventus as the Italian representatives in the tournament and were rightly given plenty of acclaim back home.

The club nicknamed as 'La Dea' (The Goddess) featured on the front pages of Gazzetta, Tuttosport and QS.

Gazzetta dello Sport's front page feautured the words: 'Atalanta get the job done in the Champions League: they're in the last 16.

'They write history by dominating Shakhtar in 3-0 win, with goals from Castagne, Pasalic and Gosens.

'Now they could face either Liverpool, Barcelona or PSG.'

Tuttosport's headline was 'Divine!', again playing on the mythical theme, adding: 'Legendary achievement, which seemed impossible after defeats in the first three games.'

And QS ran with: 'Miracle of Gasperini, Goddess in paradise'.

Nerves were frayed in Ukraine for supporters of the Italian side but Timothy Castagne's second half goal put them in charge. Mario Pasalic and Robin Gosens put the result beyond doubt to spark huge celebrations.

The team were welcomed back to the city in Bergamo by a mass show of support with fans crammed around the bus, setting off flares and chanting long into the night.

And ater the game, Gasperini was asked whether he genuinely thought the team could progress after their disastrous start.

He reflected: 'At the halfway point, we did believe, because there was a draw in the other match (between Shakhtar Donetsk and Dinamo Zagreb).

'We then drew with Manchester City, the team was clearly improving. We felt the fact Shakhtar scored to make it 3-3 with Zagreb at the 98th minute was a sign of destiny. Of course, Manchester City's result this evening in Zagreb was also very important.'