From dark horses to genuine contenders for the Serie A crown, Atalanta BC now hope to enhance their Champions League credentials on Tuesday, when they visit BSC Young Boys.
Gian Piero Gasperini's men are unbeaten in Europe this season, while their Swiss counterparts are yet to pick up a point and are third from bottom in the 36-team rankings.
Match preview
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Proudly flaunting their Europa League crown from the 2023-24 season, Atalanta have seamlessly slotted back into life among Europe's elite and are one of just six teams to navigate their first four Champions League matches without suffering defeat.
A trip to Stuttgart on matchday four brought a 2-0 triumph courtesy of second-half strikes from Ademola Lookman and Nicolo Zaniolo, as Atalanta also maintained their 100% defensive record in the 2024-25 competition; only Calcio rivals Inter Milan have also kept four clean sheets from four so far.
Even though La Dea are yet to lose a continental contest this season, dropped points against Arsenal and Celtic means that Gasperini's crop are outside the automatic qualification places in ninth spot, albeit with just a one-point deficit to Aston Villa, Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund.
The 2-0 beating of Stuttgart represents the fourth victory in a run of six straight wins for Atalanta in all competitions, as Tuesday's Scudetto-chasing visitors rose to the summit of the Serie A table by overcoming Parma 3-1 on Saturday, where the lively Lookman was on target again.
Napoli beating Roma in Sunday's headline match could knock Atalanta off their perch, but there is little that can wipe the smile off of Bergamo faces at present, especially as La Dea have also netted multiple goals in all of their six recent triumphs.
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While Atalanta have flexed their European muscles in the first half of the league phase, Young Boys are already being cut adrift with the rest of the strugglers at the foot of the rankings, having taken zero points from the first 12 available in the league phase.
Following heavy defeats to Aston Villa (3-0) and Barcelona (5-0) during the short-lived era of Patrick Rahmen, Young Boys gave the 55-year-old the boot, but caretaker head coach Joel Magnin has not been able to inspire an upturn in continental fortunes, overseeing narrow losses to Inter and Shakhtar Donetsk.
The 2-1 reverse to the Ukrainian side on matchday four means that Tuesday's hosts are just one of five teams to have lost their opening four contests, sharing that fate with RB Leipzig, Sturm Graz, Slovan Bratislava and Red Star Belgrade while only finding the back of the net on one occasion.
Magnin's men have at least taken four points from their last two Swiss Super League games since their last European setback, most recently drawing 1-1 with FC Luzern over the weekend, but their last 11 matches have only produced a mere three victories.
Tuesday's tie will see Atalanta and Young Boys reunite three years on from their battles in the 2021-22 Champions League group stage, where La Dea prevailed 1-0 on home turf but had to accept a point from an enthralling 3-3 stalemate in Switzerland, where Luis Muriel made himself the hero with an 88th-minute leveller.
Team News
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Atalanta boss Gasperini will be forced into a midfield alteration for Tuesday's game, as fundamental fulcrum Ederson has been booked three times in the 2024-25 Champions League and will serve a suspension at Stadion Wankdorf.
Lazar Samardzic should be called upon to deputise for the Brazilian and can be expected to run the Young Boys defence ragged; the 22-year-old has completed nine of his 10 dribbles in the UCL this season, the best percentage of any player to attempt at least 10.
Former West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca remains out for the long-term due to an ACL problem, while Davide Zappacosta and Giorgio Scalvini - due to precautionary reasons - are also missing, but Berat Djimsiti and Sead Kolasinac have been given the all-clear following injuries.
Atalanta are not the only ones managing concerns at the back, as six Young Boys defenders - Saidy Janko, Abdu Conte, Loris Benito, Tanguy Zoukrou, Patric Pfeiffer and the ineligible Sadin Crnovrsanin - are all in the treatment room.
Defensive midfielder Miguel Chaiwa is also out of contention due to a severe ankle injury, so Filip Ugrinic - a wide man by trade - could be shoe-horned into a deep-lying midfield position again.
Further forward, Ebrima Colley will be reuniting with Atalanta a few months after his exit from Bergamo; the 24-year-old scored 31 goals in 55 games for La Dea at Under-19 level but only played for the senior team five times.
Young Boys possible starting lineup:
Keller; Athekame, Lauper, Camara, Blum; Males, Lakomy, Ugrinic, Colley; Imeri; Ganvoula
Atalanta BC possible starting lineup:
Carnesecchi; Toloi, Hien, Kossounou; Bellanova, Samardzic, De Roon, Ruggeri; De Ketelaere; Lookman, Retegui
We say: Young Boys 0-3 Atalanta BC
An Atalanta side under Gasperini's wing almost always guarantee goals, whereas Young Boys have been largely toothless in Europe this season and will surely fall to La Dea's superiority on Tuesday.
The hosts do not help themselves in the final third either - their shot conversion rate of 2.1% is the second-worst in the tournament - so Atalanta should also maintain their perfect defensive record at Stadion Wankdorf.
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Ben Knapton
