Atalanta paid the price for defensive lapses as Serhou Guirassy and Maximilian Beier handed Borussia Dortmund a 2-0 advantage in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie.
La Dea had been close to sealing direct qualification to the Round of 16, but consecutive defeats to Athletic Club and Union Saint-Gilloise dented their momentum.
Injuries have also hit the side hard, with Charles De Ketelaere and Giacomo Raspadori ruled out for at least a month, though Gianluca Scamacca returned to the starting XI.
Borussia Dortmund came into the match off mixed form, having drawn 4-4 away to Juventus and picking up just one point from their last three matches against Bodo/Glimt, Tottenham, and Inter.
Yet, the German side had won six consecutive Bundesliga games despite missing key players Filippo Mane, Emre Can, Nico Schlotterbeck, and Nicklas Sule, giving 18-year-old Luca Reggiani a Champions League debut.
The match got underway 15 minutes late after Dortmund’s team bus was caught in traffic.
But the hosts wasted no time asserting themselves. Within three minutes, Julian Ryerson delivered a precise cross from the right, allowing Guirassy to rise above Odilon Kossounou and head Dortmund into an early lead.
Atalanta responded with some dangerous moments. Nicola Zalewski drew out the keeper and slid a cross toward Mario Pasalic, only for Daniel Svensson to make a crucial block.
Sead Kolasinac’s defensive surge created another chance for Zalewski, while Felix Nmecha’s fierce effort was blocked, and Waldemar Anton’s header missed the mark from a Ryerson free kick.
Dortmund doubled their lead just before halftime. Guirassy combined with Nmecha on a slick give-and-go down the left flank and squared the ball to Beier, who found the net unmarked.
In the second half, Atalanta pushed forward but struggled to convert opportunities.
Nikola Krstovic and Zalewski saw their efforts blocked, while Julian Brandt shot over the bar after a Marco Carnesecchi save.
Kamaldeen Sulemana and Lazar Samardzic had promising chances, but neither could beat the goalkeeper. Ramy Bensebaini even made a crucial sliding tackle in stoppage time to deny Krstovic a tap-in from close range.
With a two-goal deficit, Atalanta faces a daunting task when the sides meet again on February 25 in the second leg.
