At Atalanta, he was initially the understudy to Fabrizio Ferron during the 1990–96 seasons, therefore missing out on a starting spot during his physical prime. He was sent on loan to Piacenza Calcio during the 1991–92 season, and secured a regular place in the starting line-up over Rino Gandini. When Ferron left in the summer of 1996, Pinato became the regular starter, keeping the new signing Davide Micillo on the bench. The following season, Alberto Fontana arrived, and Pinato was once again relegated to the bench, despite having managed what is currently the 6th longest consecutive run without conceding a goal in Serie A, and the 4th best at the time, during the 1997–98 season, setting a 757-minute unbeaten streak. Fontana left in January 2001, but Pinato was too old to compete for a regular starting place with the young rising star Ivan Pelizzoli. Pelizzoli left in summer 2001 to Roma, but Pinato could only secure 5 games from new signing Massimo Taibi. He played his last Serie A match against Udinese on 3 March 2002, at the age of .