The UEFA Europa League final – Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen. Both teams have travelled the whole tournament with honour, even though they haven’t been without difficulties. The Bergamaschi well deserve to win the trophy. But still, I do not think that they will be able to stop Germany’s current hegemon.
Bayer has just two matches left to go the whole season without defeat. And the Europa League final is the toughest of those fixtures. In the other German Cup final, Xabi Alonso’s side will face an opponent from the German second division.
The club has been in the Bundesliga for a long time, where they have secured the championship. This was evident in the Bundesliga, where the club has long guaranteed itself the title. However, after that, Bayer did not give up and continued to gain points and not concede. In the previous rounds, the team defeated Eintracht (5:1), Bochum (5:0) and Augsburg (2:1). Even by the score in these meetings, it is clear the serious intent of Alonso’s team.
But Gasperini’s men are also in very respectable form. They have had only a couple of defeats in recent months. One of them happened last week – in the Italian Cup final with Juventus (0:1). But in other meetings, Bergamo looked very confident, almost only winning.
In recent rounds, the club defeated Salernitana (2:1), Roma (2:1) and Lecce (2:0). In the championship, Atalanta has already guaranteed its participation in the Champions League without waiting for the Europa League final. At the finish line, Atalanta can still beat Juve and finish the season in fourth place.
The path to the Europa League final was not easy for both opponents. Bayer had a tough time with Karabakh in 1/8—they saved themselves in the last minutes. Then, Alonso’s wards more confidently passed West Ham (2:0 and 1:1) and Roma (2:0 and 2:2). Atalanta, in the quarterfinals, knocked out one of the main favourites of the whole tournament—Liverpool (3:0 and 0:1). Then, Gasperini’s team coped with Marseille (1:1 and 3:0).
Definitely, for both rivals, this is a tough game. Atalanta won’t give up the victory so easily – they have already proved that they can fight with any opponent. But no one has been able to stop Bayer this season. Xabi Alonso’s men are cold-blooded in all matches, often waiting until the end and scoring the decisive goals there.
Date, kick-off time and venue
- Competition: UEFA Europa League
- Date: Wednesday, 22 May 2024
- Kick Off: 20:00 UK Time
- Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
How to watch the Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen live stream in the UK
- UK: TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports Ultimate, TalkSport Radio UK, discovery+, discovery+ App
- USA: nbcsports.com, SiriusXM FC, NBC Sports App, UNIVERSO NOW, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, USA Network, UNIVERSO
- Canada: DAZN Canada
- Australia: Stan Sport
- Germany: RTL, RTL+, Servus TV
- Italy: Sky Sport Calcio, NOW TV, SKY Go Italia, RaiPlay, RAI 1, Sky Sport Uno, Sky Sport 4K, DAZN Italia
Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen squads
Atalanta probable lineup
- 1 Juan Musso
- 19 Berat Djimsiti
- 4 Isak Hien
- 77 Davide Zappacosta
- 42 Giorgio Scalvini
- 22 Matteo Ruggeri
- 7 Teun Koopmeiners
- 13 Ederson
- 17 Charles De Ketelaere
- 11 Ademola Lookman
- 90 Gianluca Scamacca
Manager
Gian Piero Gasperini
Bayer probable lineup
- 17 Matej Kovar
- 4 Jonathan Tah
- 30 Jeremie Frimpong
- 12 Edmond Tapsoba
- 20 Alejandro Grimaldo
- 3 Piero Hincapie
- 10 Florian Wirtz
- 8 Robert Andrich
- 7 Jonas Hofmann
- 34 Granit Xhaka
- 14 Patrik Schick
Manager
Xabi Alonso
How can I watch the match highlights?
The highlights video will be available on the highlights page shortly after the game.
Match of the Day will have highlights on BBC One from 10:30 pm on Sunday.
