Football
Atalanta vs Arsenal Team News And Predicted Line-Ups Ahead Of Thursday Night Champions League Clash
Cai is a news and features writer that specialises in football, but has experience covering a variety of other sports, including darts, basketball, American football, MMA, boxing and more. He holds a degree in Football Journalism (BA Hons) from the University of Derby, and worked with Nottingham Forest FC and Burton Albion FC throughout his studies. Cai also has experience working in social media with the Football Association of Wales, where he worked on a freelance basis, and has also been an accredited writer in the JD Cymru Premier for both Y Clwb Pêl-Droed and welshfootie since the 2019/20 season.
Get to know Cai Parry betterPublished19 Sep 2024
Premier League giants Arsenal head to Bergamo to take on Atalanta in their Champions League league phase opener on Thursday, and we’ve got the latest in of team news and predicted line-ups ahead of the action.
Off the back of a crucial win over Tottenham in last Sunday’s North London derby, Arsenal kickstart their 2024/25 Champions League campaign with a tough away fixture against Serie A side Atalanta.
The Bergamo-based outfit were memorably crowned Europa League champions last year, with former Everton, Leicester and Fulham winger Ademola Lookman scoring a hat-trick in the final as La Dea brought Bayer Leverkusen’s unprecedented unbeaten run to an abrupt end in Dublin.
It hasn’t been the start that Atalanta would’ve hoped for heading into the new campaign however, as after a turbulent transfer window, they’ve managed just two wins in their opening five competitive matches of the season.
This includes a 2-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup and a 4-0 Serie A loss to Inter, but they bounced back in their most recent match, overcoming Fiorentina 3-2 at Stadio di Bergamo.
Arsenal meanwhile, are unbeaten after their first four Premier League matches of the campaign, recording three wins and a draw, most recently edging out their bitter rivals Spurs 1-0 away from home.
The Gunners will be aiming for a stronger showing among Europe’s elite this term, as despite advancing past the last-16 for the first time since 2009/10 last year, their quarter-final exit to Bayern Munich was largely seen as a disappointment.
Thursday’s clash will be the first time that Atalanta and Arsenal have ever met in competitive play, and the UK’s best football betting sites see Mikel Arteta’s side as favourites for the tie, priced at 17/20 to claim all three points.
Italy bound 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/aYKW4HSDBo
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 18, 2024
Atalanta vs Arsenal Team News
Atalanta Team News
The hosts are without several key figures for their opening Champions League tie of the campaign, with both Gianluca Scamacca and Giorgio Scalvini missing out with long-term injury concerns.
As well, defensive duo Rafael Toloi (muscular) and Ben Godfrey (back), previously of Everton, were both absent for the win over Fiorentina, and it is not yet known if the pair will recover in time for Arsenal’s visit.
Atalanta Predicted Line-Up
Carnesecchi; Djimsiti, Hien, Kolasinac; Bellanova, De Roon, Ederson, Ruggeri; Lookman, De Ketelaere; Retegui
Arsenal Team News
The Gunners had several injury concerns heading into the North London derby, most notably with Martin Odegaard missing out with an ankle problem, and the captain remains sidelined for the trip to Italy.
Mikel Merino (shoulder), Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee), Kieran Tierney (thigh) and Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf) are all expected to miss out too, while Declan Rice will return to the fold after missing the Tottenham clash through suspension.
There had also been concerns over Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka heading into continental action, however the pair were pictured in Arsenal training on Wednesday morning, so should be in contention on Thursday.
Arsenal Predicted Line-Up
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Partey, Jorginho, Rice; Sterling, Havertz, Trossard