Maehle reveals he was banned from DRIVING with £72m Man United starlet Hojlund

Ex-Atalanta player Joakim Maehle hit out at his former coach Gian Piero Gasperini and his lack of 'freedom' at the Serie A side after securing a permanent move to Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg.

The 26-year-old decried the 'super tough' mental environment reportedly overseen by the Italian manager, who has taken charge in Bergamo since 2016.

Speaking ahead of Denmark's 2024 Euro qualifier against San Marino on Thursday, the Danish full-back was outspoken about his desire to leave the club during the summer's transfer window.

Along with Maehle, the Lombardy club also waved goodbye to rising starlet Rasmus Hojlund, who joined Manchester United for £72million to become Serie A's most expensive player during the window.

As per Maehle's retelling, reported by Danish site tipsbladet.dk, Hojlund also found himself in Gasperini's firing line whilst at the club.

'The coach decided everything. And there wasn't really any freedom,' Maehle told reporters when asked about his time at Atalanta. 'Event though I lived in a nice place and the weather was good, I didn't have time to enjoy it because we spent so many days and hours at the training ground.

'It was super tough mentally. Even if you played a great game at the weekend, and the following one you didn't play too well for 20 minutes, you would go to the back of the queue again.

'There was not the continuity you see in other places. Mentally, I could feel that I really needed a change.'

Maehle is said to have smiled when one journalist asked if being at the club felt like 'a prison', adding: 'You are saying it.'

Of Gasperini, he said: 'He really decided everything. Sometimes, when we had a double training session, he said we should stay and sleep at the training facility, so we were not