Atalanta BC will be chasing more Champions League success when they travel to take on BSC Young Boys in the group stage on Tuesday. Unbeaten in Europe this term, the Italians will be keen to keep the momentum going, while Young Boys are still looking for their maiden points after four hard-fought defeats.
Atalanta’s Successful Campaign in Champions League
Atalanta BC have been impressive in the 2024-25 Champions League guided by Gian Piero Gasperini. The team has continued to be unbeaten in the opening four matches. At the back of a 2-0 victory over Stuttgart in Matchday 4, Atalanta sealed their fourth clean sheet, with only Inter Milan matching this defensive record.
Despite that, dropped points against Arsenal and Celtic have left them in 9th place on the log, with only a point separating them from Aston Villa, Barcelona, and Borussia Dortmund, meaning every match will be crucial for securing automatic qualification to the knockout stages.
In Serie A, Atalanta are flying high, having recently claimed first place after a 3-1 victory over Parma. With six consecutive wins across all competitions, the Bergamo-based club is in red-hot form.
Young Boys’ Struggles in the Champions League
BSC Young Boys have found themselves at the bottom with zero points from their opening four matches. After heavy defeats to Aston Villa 3 – 0 and Barcelona 5 – 0, the Swiss side’s European campaign has been disappointing. They remain third from the bottom in the 36-team standings.
The club sacked Patrick Rahmen after the grim results and Joel Magnin has taken over the reins as caretaker manager. Their fortunes haven’t changed though, losing narrowly to Inter Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk. Though the recent domestic form has been on the improvement, having drawn 1-1 with FC Luzern over the weekend, Young Boys are yet to find their footing in Europe.
Team News:
Young Boys vs. Atalanta BC
Atalanta BC
Atalanta will be without the suspended Ederson after the midfielder picked up a third yellow card in the Champions League. Lazar Samardzic replaces him in midfield. Samardzic has been standout this season, completing 9 from 10 dribbles in the competition.
Still on the sidelines is Gianluca Scamacca, who is still recovering from his ACL injury, and the defenders Ben Godfrey, Sead Kolasinac, Berat Djimsiti, and Davide Zappacosta
Young Boys
The injury list of the Swiss side is long with Saidy Janko, Abdu Conte, Loris Benito, Tanguy Zoukrou, Patric Pfeiffer and the ineligible Sadin Crnovrsanin all ruled out. Miguel Chaiwa will also miss out due to injury to his ankle which could see Filip Ugrinic play in a deeper midfield position.
Upfront, Ebrima Colley, who formerly played for Atalanta’s youth team, shall be eager to make an impact against his former side.
Predicted lineups
Carnesecchi; Toloi, Hien, Kossounou; Bellanova, Samardzic, De Roon, Ruggeri; De Ketelaere; Lookman, Retegui
]
Keller; Athekame, Lauper, Camara, Blum; Males, Lakomy, Ugrinic, Colley; Imeri; Ganvoula
Match Prediction: Young Boys 0-3 Atalanta BC
Atalanta are the clear favorites heading into this Champions League clash. With a strong squad, solid defensive record, and excellent form in both Europe and Serie A, Gasperini’s side is poised to continue their perfect record in the group stage.
However, Young Boys have not found any rhythm in this competition; for that matter, with a low shot conversion rate of 2.1% – the second worst in the tournament – they surely have an uphill task against a hard nut to crack like Atalanta’s defense.
We predict a comfortable 3-0 win for Atalanta, keeping their unbeaten European run intact while it further cements their pole position in the group.
