The Midfielder Ends Club Goal Drought, But Atalanta Fall to First Serie A Defeat of 2026
Yunus Musah marked his return to competitive club scoring on Sunday, netting a stunning late goal for Atalanta, but it proved insufficient as the Bergamo side slipped to a 2-1 defeat away at Sassuolo, ending an impressive unbeaten run in Serie A that had stretched back to late December.
The American midfielder came off the bench in the 67th minute with Atalanta already trailing by two goals, Ismael Koné having bundled home from a corner on 23 minutes before Kristian Thorstvedt drilled a fierce strike into the top corner shortly after the hour mark. Atalanta had been reduced to chasing the game for much of the afternoon, with Sassuolo playing the final 74 minutes with 10 men following Andrea Pinamonti's early red card.
With two minutes remaining, Musah finally gave Atalanta a lifeline. Meeting Davide Zappacosta's cross from the right, he struck it first time into the roof of the net—a finish of real quality that ended his club goalscoring drought stretching all the way back to January 2022, when he scored for Valencia against Atletico Madrid. Atalanta pushed desperately for an equaliser, with Scalvini coming agonisingly close in stoppage time, only to be denied by a fine save from Sassuolo goalkeeper Arijanet Muric.
Despite the defeat, Musah remained measured and forward-looking. "This is our first defeat of 2026 in Serie A, so we want to bounce back straight away next week," he said. He also drew a positive from the setback, adding that "games like this can even give the players a bit more fire and motivation."
Musah, who has made 19 appearances across all competitions this season, will be hoping Sunday's goal is enough to force his way into Atalanta's starting lineup when they travel to Lazio in Coppa Italia action on Wednesday.
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