Trailing 2-1 in the UEFA Champions League knockout phase play-off, an injury-laden Atalanta must achieve a feat they haven’t managed since the 1987/88 season: advancing in a European knockout tie after losing the initial leg. However, their prospects seem dim as they have secured just one victory in their last four Champions League matches (D1, L2), and their goalless Serie A draw against Cagliari on Saturday did little to boost morale.
That solitary UCL victory occurred at home, where they dominated Sturm Graz 5-0 during the league phase, providing a glimmer of hope for La Dea. Nonetheless, they have yet to win back-to-back games at the Gewiss Stadium in this competition. Additionally, they will be wary of history repeating itself, as their only previous European encounter with a Belgian club resulted in a 2-1 defeat to Mechelen during the semi-finals of the 1987/88 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup.
Club Brugge head to Italy having suffered defeat in just one of their previous six Champions League fixtures, specifically against former titleholders Manchester City. This sequence of games includes a scoreless draw with the Italian team Juventus (W3, D2). Despite holding an advantage in the tie, they might be under some pressure given that no team has historically been knocked out more frequently than they have (16 times) after securing a first-leg victory in a European knockout series.
Compounding this pressure is their lack of victories in their last seven away matches against Italian sides (D2, L5), which incorporates the 3-1 loss to AC Milan in October. Securing wins on foreign ground has been a considerable hurdle for the Belgian team, who have clinched victory in only one of their last seven away Champions League encounters (D3, L3). However, they did manage to come back from a 2-0 deficit to draw 2-2 at St. Truiden on Saturday.
Key players to keep an eye on: Mario Pašalić has found the back of the net in Atalanta’s last three Champions League matches, twice netting the team’s second goal. Ferran Jutglá of Club Brugge kicked off the scoring in the first leg with his sixth goal this season, four of those came before the 20th minute mark.
Current form: Club Brugge have managed to score exactly one goal in each of their most recent five away games in the Champions League (Winning 1, Drawing 1, Losing 3).
