Atalanta striker Andrea Petagna thanked Coach Gian Piero Gasperini after his senior Italy debut. “He changed my life.”

The 21-year-old came on as a substitute during the Azzurri’s 2-1 friendly victory away to the Netherlands last night.

“That was a truly unforgettable evening and I will hold it with me for the rest of my life,” Petagna told the official Atalanta website.

Atalanta striker Andrea Petagna thanked Coach Gian Piero Gasperini after his senior Italy debut. “He changed my life.”

The 21-year-old came on as a substitute during the Azzurri’s 2-1 friendly victory away to the Netherlands last night.

“That was a truly unforgettable evening and I will hold it with me for the rest of my life,” Petagna told the official Atalanta website.

“I thank Giampiero Ventura, who gave me this opportunity, and it’s thanks to Atalanta that I reached the Nazionale. It was such a crazy feeling, as I had the honour to spend 10 days with great champions like Gigi Buffon and Daniele de Rossi, really important players and it was great to be up against them.

“I was on the bench against Albania and it was emotional to sing the national anthem together. When I stepped on to the field against the Netherlands, I thought of all the difficulties I overcame to get here.

“The night before, I was thinking about playing in Serie B a year ago and now I am in the Nazionale. I got here thanks to Gasperini, he changed my life.

“I also thank Atalanta and the Percassi family for having faith in me and buying up my contract in January.

“Now we all at Atalanta want to achieve our dream of qualifying for Europe and we really believe in ourselves.”

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