Explained: How Serie A can get 6th UEFA Champions League spot next season after Atalanta's Europa League win

Serie A can get a sixth club in next season's UEFA Champions League as a result of Atalanta's win against Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Europa League final on Wednesday, May 22.

La Dea ended Bayer Leverkusen's 51-game unbeaten streak across competitions with an emphatic 3-0 win in Dublin. Ademola Lookman scored a hat-trick in the final to help the Serie A side win the continental trophy.

Serie A has already secured one of the new two spots in next season's Champions League. However. Atalanta, courtesy of their Europa League triumph, secured a direct qualification to next season's Champions League.

If Atalanta finish outside the top four, then another team will enter the competition as the fifth-place Serie A side. Atalanta are currently fifth in Serie A. If they remain in that position and don't overtake Bologna to seal a fourth-placed finish, then sixth-placed AS Roma will also qualify for next season's Champions League.

However, it is crucial for Atalanta not to finish in the top four. The rules were decided before the start of the season and only under this circumstance, six Serie A teams can feature in next season's Champions League.

Atalanta's Ademola Lookman reacts to scoring a hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen

Ademola Lookman was the star of the show as Atalanta managed a 3-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final. He became the first player to score a hat-trick in a Europa League final.

Lookman's heroics also helped Atalanta win their first trophy in 61 years. Reacting to the biggest night of his professional career, Lookman said (via Outlook):

"One of the best nights of my life. Amazing performance from the team, we did it, we did it! I haven't got much else to say, but fantastic."

Atalanta head coach Gian Piero Gasperini, meanwhile, became only the second Italian manager to win the Europa League. Maurizio Sarri had done it back in 2019 with Chelsea.

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