Europa League: European Upstarts Hungry for Continental Glory

RB Leipzig vs Atalanta

The thrill of the Europa League returns this week and we’re treated to a banger of a match between two exciting sides given their swashbuckling style of play.

RB Leipzig and Atalanta have come a long way in these past few years as they’ve rose from obscurity, and now they’re in contention for one of Europe’s biggest prizes.

The Red Bulls played their first-ever match in UEFA competition in 2017. And since then, they’ve reached a Europa League quarter-final and a Champions League semi-final.

La Dea, meanwhile, have reached the Champions League knockout stage in both of their last two campaigns. However, they were booted out by Villarreal this time around.

Fast forward to today. the stage is now set in Bergamo for this fixture and the pre-match SBOTOP betting odds expect a highly-competitive encounter between these two clubs on Thursday.

Talking Points

RB Leipzig face a make-or-break stretch

Since Domenico Tedesco replaced Jesse Marsch, not only they’re on course to return to the Champions League, but they also have two chances to bring home silverware in the Europa League and the DFB-Pokal.

That just goes to show the progress they’ve made from being a virtual unknown few years ago, and now they’re relishing the challenge of establishing themselves as part of Europe’s elite.

RB Leipzig are fresh from a comprehensive victory against a Borussia Dortmund side that were desperate to keep their Bundesliga title hopes alive. Konrad Laimer had a brace while Christopher Nkunku and Dani Olmo also scored in the 4-1 win.

The said trio will have to continue to shoulder the load especially since the squad is dealing with key absences as Amadou Haidara has an MCL injury while Yussuf Poulsen tweaked his groin during international duty.

Nkunku in particular is enjoying the best form of his life and he’ll keep Atalanta’s defence honest with his searing pace and creativity. The newly-minted French international has a direct hand in 42 goals on 40 appearances so far this season, which includes nine in their last 10 European games.

Atalanta lacking the cutting edge

It’s not a coincidence that Atalanta have been inconsistent when they struggle up front. They’ve only scored once in five of their last six matches in all competitions, which has resulted to two wins, two losses, and one draw.

Their growing list of absences hasn’t helped them at all as Josip Ilicic and Duvan Zapata have missed time for different reasons, and Gian Piero Gasperini is hopeful that they’ll be available this Thursday.

Zapata suffered an adductor tear since last December but he is reported to be weeks ahead of schedule. He might make his return this week to link up with Luis Muriel and Ruslan Malinovskyi up front, which means that Jeremie Boga will go back to being one of their bench options.

Furthermore, Teun Koopmeiners, Mario Pasalic, and Merih Demiral will also have increased roles since Josip Ilicic (mental health) and Rafael Toloi (groin) are still unavailable to play.

History

This Thursday marks the first-ever meeting between RB Leipzig and Atalanta here in Europe. The Red Bulls’ most recent match against an Italian side was when they eliminated Napoli in the Final 32 of this exact competition back in the 2017/18 season.

Meanwhile, Atalanta have fought against German opposition six times in the knockout phase of European competitions.

The first time was when they eliminated Koln during the Last 16 of the 1990/91 UEFA Cup, and their most recent was when they defeated Bayer Leverkusen sans Patrik Schick in the previous round of this year’s Europa League.

In terms of recent form, RB Leipzig has the edge since their last loss in all competitions dates back to February (3-2 against Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga).

However, Atalanta have won each of their last four fixtures in Europe. Should La Dea win again, it’ll be their longest-ever winning run in Europe at five.

Betting Tip

RB Leipzig are favoured by the Europa League 2022 odds. They are priced to win at 1.88, while Atalanta are pegged lower at 3.45 and a draw is at 3.60 in the 1X2 market.

While RB Leipzig have been in better form lately, Atalanta are not to be counted out easily – making this a tough call to see who will win. One thing is for sure, though, we expect to be entertained by the number of Europa League 2022 highlights that will be generated from this match given the talented attackers from both sides. So, Over 2.50 @ 1.71 sounds like a plausible bet on Thursday.

 

●●●

CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FOOTBALL STORIES & ODDS

Stay updated with everything sports and betting.

Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.