Europa League 2023/24 final preview: Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen

The UEFA Europa League campaign is set to draw to a close on Wednesday when Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen clash at the Aviva Stadium in what will be an enthralling final contest. 

This season’s campaign has been a testament to the unpredictability and excitement of the beautiful game where underdogs emerged, giants fell, and records broken. From stunning comebacks to unbeaten runs and shocking upsets, this season’s UEFA Europa League campaign had all the excitement. The final two teams in the competition are now set to tussle for supremacy at the 51,700-seat Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

For Atalanta, while being impressive in both domestic and European competitions, their season is just one of the most beautiful underdog stories in football where teams defy all odds to emerge as unlikely contenders for titles.

This was evident in Atalanta’s Coppa Italia qualification to the final where they lost to Juventus as well as their Europa League final qualification after knocking out tournament favourites like Sporting CP, Liverpool and Marseille.

La Dea finished at the top of Group D in the group stages before eliminating Portuguese Champions Sporting with a 3:2 aggregate score. A shock 3:0 win to Liverpool at Anfield followed soon after before holding firm in the second leg to qualify with a 3:1 aggregate score. Meeting Marseille was never going to be an easy task but the Italian side did just enough to qualify for the finals with an emphatic 4:1 aggregate win.

Gian Piero Gasperini will become the oldest manager to take care of his first European final and will look to end Atalanta’s trophy drought since the 1963 campaign.

However, doing that against an unbeaten Leverkusen team will prove a daunting task for the Italian outfits who will also be without some key players in this contest.

Leverkusen seem to be stronger with every passing game and with just the Europa League and DFB Pokal remaining, Xabi Alonso’s side could become the second Bundesliga side to win the treble that includes a European trophy.

Alonso has orchestrated a 51-match unbeaten run for his side with a record of 42 wins and nine draws. Die Werkself are also embarking on a record-breaking goalscoring spree that has seen them make 234 attempts on goal, only behind Chelsea’s 2018-19 Europa League campaign where they netted 247 goals.

The Bundesliga Champions had a dramatic knockout stage en route to the final, with late goals being a constant theme in their tournament this season. Two late goals in the first leg against Qarabag in the round of 16 were followed by a thrilling 3:2 win in the second leg where the German side rallied back from two goals down to seal qualification into the next round. After brushing out West Ham United 2:0 in the first leg, another 89th-minute Jeremie Frimpong equaliser extended their unbeaten run across all competitions.

One would expect that AS Roma would give the Bundesliga outfit a run for their money but it wasn’t to be the case as Leverkusen outclassed Roma at the Stadio Olimpico to emerge 2:0 winners. Hopes of a turnaround in the second leg by Roma were dashed when Gianluca Mancini turned the ball into his net before a stoppage time Josip Stanišić equaliser took the game out of reach for Roma as Die Werkself emered 4:2 winners on aggregate.

They now gear up to face a spirited Atalanta side that have defied the odds in this tournament, eliminating some of the favourites to reach the final of this season’s UEFA Europa League.

Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen match details 

• Date: Wednesday, 22 May 2024
• Location: Dublin, Republic of Ireland
• Venue: Aviva Stadium
• Kick-off time: 8:00 PM BST, 9:00 PM CEST, 7:00 PM UTC, 12:30 AM IST
• Referee: István Kovács
• Assistant referees: Vasile Florin Marinescu and Mihai Ovidiu Artene
• Fourth official: Ivan Kružliak
• Reserve assistant: Branislav Hancko
• VAR: Pol van Boekel
• Assistant VAR: Catalin Popa
• VAR support: Rob Dieperink
• Tickets: Supporters can buy Europe League tickets via the club websites, UEFA’s website or through reputable resellers such as Seatsnet.com.

Match stats and head-to-head

• These two sides have met on two occasions with La Dea winning both legs of the 2021-22 UEFA Europa League knockout stages. Another loss against Atalanta could see the German champions tally their longest losing streak against an opponent in a European competition after losing thrice in a row against Inter Milan.

• Both opponents have scored in seven of the last nine Europa League finals including a run of five consecutive finals in a row.

• Leverkusen have produced comebacks in four of their last six Europa League knockout matches against the likes of West Ham, AS Roma, and the two-legged tie against Qarabag.

• This will be the first European final between a German and Italian opponent since the 2010 UEFA Champions League final between Inter and Bayern Munich. Overall, it is the eighth major European final played between an Italian and German opponent.

• Leverkusen hold the record for the most goal attempts in the Europa League this season with a sky-high 234 attempts. They are only behind Chelsea(247) as the team with the most shots in the history of the competition.

• Atalanta will be playing their first-ever European final, becoming the 11th different team from the Italian top-flight to reach a European final.

• With an unbeaten record of nine wins and three draws, Alonso’s side are looking to become just the fourth side to win the Europa League unbeaten after Chelsea, Villarreal, and Eintracht Frankfurt.

• Atalanta could become the first side from the Serie A to win the UEFA Europa League. The trophy has only been won by clubs from Laliga, Primeira Liga, Premier League and Bundesliga.

• Alonso’s side hold the record for the most 90th-minute goals in Europa League history after scoring six 90th-minute goals in 31 matches.

Team News

Leverkusen have a clean bill of health in his squad ahead of the Europa League final. Youngster, Florian Wirtz is expected to return to the starting lineup after playing 30 minutes of Leverkusen’s win over Augsburg last weekend.

Alonso will be spoilt for choice as every member of his squad is fit but will face selection headache over Europa League regulars or Bundesliga regulars.

Pedro Hincapie, Granit Xhaka, and Patrick Schick are some of the first team regulars who started from the bench in Leverkusen’s 2:1 win over Augsburg last Saturday and could be set for a recall in the Europa League final clash on Wednesday.

For Atalanta, club-captain, Rafael Toloi is a doubt for this match and will undergo a fitness test to determine his availability for the match.

Emil Holm has been ruled out of this clash with a calf injury alongside Marten De Roon who suffered a thigh injury in La Dea’s Coppa Italia final defeat to Juventus.

Saed Kolasinac is also a major doubt for the Europa League final clash after missing the last three weeks with a thigh injury.

Predicted starting lineup

Atalanta predicted starting lineup:

Musso; Djimsiti, Hien, Scalvini; Zappacosta, Pasalic, Ederson, Ruggeri; Koopmeiners, De Ketelaere; Scamacca.

Bayer Leverkusen predicted starting lineup:

Kovar; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Xhaka, Andrich, Grimaldo; Hofmann, Wirtz; Schick.

Prediction

Leverkusen are currently in red-hot form and Alonso has enough firepower in his arsenal to select from. However, Atalanta have proven they won’t be easily brushed aside as their commanding displays have helped them beat the biggest teams against all odds.

It will be a tight game with both teams capable of hurting the other and it is tipped to be one of the most thrilling finals in recent seasons.

We’re predicting a 2:1 win for Leverkusen.