The View From Italy: Atalanta stat-pack & 16/5 bet in Europa League final

• Atalanta play second cup final in a week

• Lost to Juventus in Coppa Italia

• Italians have attacking strength to trouble Leverkusen

Betfair Superboost

Italy and Germany flock to Ireland on Wednesday for tonight's Europa League Final at the Aviva Stadium, with Bayern Leverkusen looking to extend their season long unbeaten run against Atalanta.

Should they avoid defeat here, they will have one more match to play to finish the 2023-24 campaign undefeated, and possibly winning an unprecedented treble.

Leverkusen are expected to dominate the ball this evening, and Betfair have rolled out a Superboost on an Atalanta side - who commit more fouls per Europa League game than any other - to commit 12 or more this evening. That can be backed below at 1/12.00 - up from 4/71.57!

The Italian side have hit the 12+ mark in all but one of their Europa League encounters this season (11 in the other), with their game-by-game tally in the competition as follows - 17, 16, 14, 16, 15, 18, 16, 17, 11, 12, 16, 14.

Atalanta v Bayer Leverkusen
Wednesday, 20:00
Live on TNT Sports

Atalanta look to end 61-year wait

Atalanta face their second cup final in just a week, when they take on the Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen in Dublin.

Last Wednesday, Gian Piero Gasperini's side lost 1-0 in the Coppa Italia final against Juventus, in a game in which they dominated possession, but failed to translate their superiority into shots on goal.

Atalanta bounced back from that disappointment over the weekend with a 2-0 win at Lecce. This result secured their involvement in next season's Champions League, regardless of the result of this final.

In a season in which Atalanta's squad has been challenged by the fixture demands of their cup runs, they ended their Serie A campaign in strong form, winning their last five games.

Of course, that pales into insignificance against Bayer Leverkusen's season-long unbeaten run of 51 games across all competitions. Atalanta are the outsiders here at 9/52.80 to lift the trophy, with Leverkusen at 4/91.44.

Atalanta are out at 16/54.20 to win in regular time, with Gasperini resting some key players in the win against Lecce, as the Bergamo-based club look to lift their first trophy in 61-years.

The veteran manager will be without his injured midfielder Marten de Roon, with Emil Holm and Sead Kolasinac both doubts for this final.

Ones to Watch

Let's take a look at some of the Atalanta players who could make an impact against Leverkusen and could be worth adding to your Bet Builders.

The Shooter

Atalanta struggled without their regular striker Gianluca Scamacca in the Coppa Italia final. The former West Ham man was back for the match against Lecce on Saturday and found the net for the 18th time this season.

Six of those goals have come in the Europa League and Scamacca looks overpriced at 3/14.00 to find the net.

The Creator

Atalanta are blessed to have a trio of in-form creative attackers to complement Scamacca. The on-loan Charles De Ketelaere has 23 goals involvements this season (14 goals, nine assists), while Teun Koopmeiners has 22 (15 goals, seven assists) and Ademola Lookman 20 (twelve goals, eight assists).

Lookman is 21/10 to either score or assist, with De Ketelaere and Koopmeiners both out at a tempting price of 11/43.75.

The Passer

Atalanta also have some creative talent lurking deeper. Mario Pasalic has 14 goals involvements (seven goals, seven assists) and is likely to start in the heart of the midfield.

If the Italians are chasing a goal, expect Aleksey Miranchuk to come off the bench. He is Atalanta's assist-king, having provided twelve goals for his teammates this season. Pasalic is 5/16.00 to assist, with Miranchuk at 11/26.50.

The Fouler

De Roon has been shown a yellow card on 14 occasions this season, but with the 33-year-old injured, Ederson will be tasked with anchoring the midfield.

The Brazilian is no slouch when it comes to bookings himself. He's seen yellow on ten occasions. Ederson is 6/42.50 to receive a card.

Atalanta to face double heartbreak

They've already lost one cup final in the last week and it's hard not to envisage the same ending when they take on Xabi Alonso's fearsome Leverkusen side.

Leverkusen have won 42 of their 51 games this season, which makes the 5/61.84 for them to claim victory in 90 minutes, look somewhat generous.

Yet Atalanta have the attacking prowess to make this a tough game. As Leverkusen look to complete a treble, their defensive standards have softened a little in recent weeks, with Alonso's side conceding in six of their last eight matches.

Atalanta have four attackers that are in double figures for goals and should get on the scoresheet. You can back a Leverkusen win and both teams to score at 16/54.20.

EURO 2024 Golden Boot: 12/1 Ronaldo, 25/1 Foden & 150/1 LaLiga star