Atalanta coach Raffaele Palladino congratulates Bayern Munich on Champions League win

Bayern Munich's Belgian head coach Vincent Kompany (R) greets Atalanta's Italian coach Raffaele Palladino prior to the UEFA Champions League, Round of 16 2nd-leg football match between FC Bayern Munich and Atalanta in Munich, southern Germany, on March 18, 2026. (Photo by Alexandra BEIER / AFP via Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images Bayern Munich put on one of the more dominant displays in the Champions League Round of 16, demolishing Atalanta 10-2 over two legs — and featuring a heavy dose of squad rotation and youngsters in the second match while doing it. But the experience, while a bitter disappointment for the Italian side, has left Atalanta coach Raffaele Palladino with nothing but admiration.

“I want to congratulate Bayern, Vincent Kompany, and wish them the best of luck,” Palladino said after the match (as captured by @iMiaSanMia ). “We faced the best team in the world and our goal was to give it our all. We have to accept the result with humility and compliment the opponent.

We learned a lot from these two games. ” The Serie A side gave…well, a reasonable account of themselves, and did net a consolation goal in each game. The only way to match Bayern this year appears to be, for most teams, catching them at a low point in squad availability or motivation.

But the Bavarians were locked in for this tie and showed it — and having run into the buzzsaw, there is little left for Atalanta to do but learn what lessons it can. Credit to a top class response from the coach. Now it’s back to Serie A, where the 7th-placed side needs to make a late push to land in the European spots this season.