Le Parisien’s dream of winning Champions League seems quite plausible this year. They have longer rest and preparation time, mainly due to the cancellation of Ligue 1. This week, they will be facing off one of the most progressive teams in Europe and the most productive one in Serie A, Atalanta. The French side might be more experienced in Champions League but such is no reason to claim the victory easily as Papu Gomez and Co are as dangerous as the rest of the teams. In fact, PSG must not underestimate the Italian side if they do not want to end up Valencia in the round of 16. The match will be held in Estadio Da Luz, Lisbon on Wednesday.
The teams’ previous matches
Atalanta failed to secure the runner-up position as they lost in their final game of Serie A against their nearest contender Inter Milan. They were defeated 0-2. Danilo Ambrosio and Ashley Young scored La Beniamata’s winning goals. Such loss ended their 19 games of unbeaten run.
PSG, on the other hand, were able to clinched another domestic title. They won Coup de La Ligue as they beat Lyon on penalties 6-5 after a goalless draw in 120 minutes.
Possible tactic
The former Genoa boss with the brief spell in Inter, Gian Gasperini has always been deploying the fluid 3-4-3 with the transition to 3-4-2-1 or 3-4-1-2. He counts on the physical game and versatility in their players. It has been Atalanta’s trademark and such may lead to unexpected starting IX. Yet, with the injury of Josip Illicic, the goalie Pierluigi Golini and the center back Jose Luis Palomino, the Colombian duo, Duvan Zapata and Luis Muriel are likely to return to the line up with Papu Gomez or Mario Pasalic behind them. Marco Sportiello will be the one between the sticks and Mattia Caldara will be covering Palomino’s absence.
Thomas Tuchel is likely to employ 4-3-3 with various transformation to 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2. Neymar, Mauro Icardi and Pablo Sarabia will be the ones upfront as Kylian Mbappe is injured and Angel Di Maria is suspended. In the midfield, Leandro Paredes will take over Marco Verrati’s absence due to his injury. He will be accompanied by Idrissa Gueye and Ander Herrera.
In Atalanta, Luis Muriel and Duvan Zapata are the main scorer after Josip Illicic’s absence while Papu Gomez will be the playmaker. Some other notable figures to watch are Ruslan Malinovsky, Robin Gosens and the Croatian Mario Pasalic.
Meanwhile, the Brazilian superstar Neymar will still be the key man with three goals and two assists alongside Mauro Icardi who has netted five goals in UCL so far.
Atalanta vs PSG Prediction
Gasperini’s men will face the real test here in the encounter against one of the favorites in UCL. PSG is surely a tough opponent, yet they might be potentially frustrated by Atalanta’s solid defence and physical midfielders. Tuchel’s men should focus more on relying on speed and creativity to steal some goals. Eventually, PSG could secure a narrow win due to the Neymar factor.
Betting odds
The punters seem to be slightly backing on Le Parisien. They are projected to win at 2.00, whereas La Dea’s win market is at 3.45. The odds for the draw result are at the value of 3.90.
