Will the Bergamasques also go down to defeat at Anfield?

Eight teams can still have hopes of winning the Europa League title. Liverpool Football Club are currently considered to have by far the best chance of winning it all. To underpin their ambitions, however, the current runners-up in the English Premier League must first get rid of Atalanta Bergamo in the quarter-finals. The visitors from Lombardy may be going through a complicated phase at national level at the moment, but they have already proven on several occasions in the past that they can be a serious opponent in the European Cup.

The Bergamasques will also have very fond memories of their last away appearance at Anfield Road, as “La Dea” won 2-0 at the LFC Football Temple in the 2020/21 Champions League group stage, causing a huge surprise. Looking at the odds, it seems rather unlikely that such a result in favor of Gasperini’s side will be repeated on Thursday evening. Ahead of the quarter-final first leg between Liverpool and Atalanta Bergamo, only 1.37 is on offer for a home win for the favorites.

Strictly speaking, the Italians will have to keep the expected defeat to a minimum in order to keep their chances of reaching the preliminary round alive. However, the underdogs could score an own goal with an all-defensive approach in view of the Reds’ immense attacking power. Apart from that, this would also not be in line with the primarily courageous approach anchored in their own DNA

Liverpool – Statistics & current form

If Liverpool were to lose out to Arsenal and/or Manchester City in the race for the English championship after 38 matchdays, the Reds would probably have only themselves to blame. The reason for this is their worrying ineffectiveness, which reached new heights last Sunday at Old Trafford against arch-rivals Manchester United. Despite numerous top-class scoring opportunities and total dominance in the first 45 minutes, LFC ultimately had to be happy to have at least snatched a point from the theater of dreams in a 2-2 draw.

The devastating proliferation of chances, which at times took on obscene proportions, especially before the break, ultimately meant that coach Jürgen Klopp’s side had to cede their recent lead at the top of the table to the Gunners, who were level on points. An intense three-way battle for the Premier League title is in the offing. In the Europa League, meanwhile, the Reds still have a good chance of lifting a trophy. However, their quarter-final opponents from Bergamo should not be taken lightly

Dismantling Liverpool’s next opponent in Europe?

The fact remains that the performance of the team from the city of the Beatles will decide who makes it through to the semi-finals. The superiority that the PL title contenders have shown at international level this season also speaks for this. With 28 goals scored in eight matches, LFC have the best offense in the Europa League so far. The Scousers have won half of all their matches by a margin of at least four goals. The last time a team scored so many goals in a European Cup match was almost 60 (!) years ago.

The two round of 16 results against Sparta Prague were also indicative of this dominance. The Reds took a 5:1 lead in the Czech capital. This was followed by a 6:1 win at home. Seven of the eleven goals were scored before the break. It is also exciting to note that in six of the eight EL matches played involving LFC, the over 3.5 would have gone through. A total of 37 goals were scored, an average of almost five per match. However, this was also due to the fact that Klopp’s team only kept a clean sheet in two out of eight matches and are always good for conceding a goal.

Finally, the special home strength of the PL runners-up must be emphasized. On the one hand, with the statistic that Liverpool have only lost one of their 25 Europa League games at Anfield (19-5-1) and have won nine in a row recently. On the other hand, with the fact that only Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City have so far been able to keep under two goals conceded at LFC’s home temple in 2023/24. It therefore seems only logical to take a closer look at the odds on either a commanding home win or a high-scoring game before the first leg of Liverpool v Atalanta Bergamo.

Predicted Liverpool line-up:

Atalanta Bergamo – Statistics & current form

Atalanta Bergamo have made great progress over the last decade. Coach Gian Piero Gasperini, who has been at the helm in Lombardy for almost eight years now and has led the club back to the heights, is mainly responsible for this. Looking back over the past five seasons, this is the third European quarter-final that the Bergamo side have reached.

However, they have never reached the semi-finals in this retrospective. In 2019/20, PSG proved to be too big a team in the top flight, while in 2021/22 they were eliminated by RB Leipzig in the Europa League. If we believe the odds between Liverpool and Atalanta Bergamo, the Italians should once again be eliminated in the last eight next week. Bet-at-Home is offering 4.00 for “La Dea” to progress.

Atalanta fights against the negative trend

In contrast to Liverpool FC, who even suffered two defeats in the group stage, Atalanta Bergamo are still completely unbeaten in the current Europa League season. In addition to five wins, there have also been three draws, two of them away from home. The “Nerazzurri” have scored at least one goal in all eight matches. In addition, they conceded just six goals in total, the second-fewest of all quarter-final participants.

However, it would be wrong to conclude from this that the defense is the showpiece of coach Gian Piero Gasperini’s team. On the one hand, the Lombards benefited from the fact that they faced two rather harmless teams in the group stage, Rakow and Sturm Graz. Secondly, the Black & Blues have recently been extremely vulnerable against the ball at national level. They have conceded at least two goals in four of their last five Serie A matches. In total, they even conceded ten goals.

The Bergamo side have only won one of their last six league games, which has seen them drop to sixth in the league table and a potential Champions League qualification move into the distant future. The 1:2 away defeat at relegation candidates Cagliari at the weekend was the sad low point of the recent downward trend in form. To make matters worse, the 20-year-old Scalvini, the club’s best and most talented defender, is out through injury. Although the strong Atalanta offense can always be expected to score a goal or several goals, it will probably not be enough for a “point win” in the city of the Beatles.

Predicted line-up of Atalanta Bergamo:

Liverpool – Atalanta Bergamo head-to-head comparison / H2H result

The only two head-to-head meetings between these teams date back to the 2020/21 Champions League season, when the clubs met in Group D and each won at the other’s stadium. Bergamo won 2:0 in Liverpool, while the Reds won 5:0 in Lombardy. While the same coaches were on the touchline more than three years ago, at least the personnel on the pitch has changed. The impact on the upcoming Europa League quarter-final first leg is therefore limited

Liverpool – Atalanta Bergamo tip

In the new Beidfüßig episode on the Europa League, Carsten Fuß talks about “rock ‘n’ roll” in his introduction to this match. And for good reason, as both teams share a passion for playing offensive and courageous soccer. Despite the fact that Liverpool are clearly ahead against Atalanta Bergamo according to the betting odds, it would be fatal if the visitors were to settle at the back. Without relief, a clear defeat threatens. However, the Italians should be able to cause problems for LFC’s high-scoring defense, especially on the counterattack.

We are therefore of the opinion that there will be a few goals to be seen at Anfield Road on Thursday evening. In six of the eight EL games involving the Reds, the over would have gone 3.5. In fact, Klopp’s team has the best offense in the competition with 28 goals. They scored four of their own goals in four out of eight matches. However, the clean sheet was only kept twice. With this in mind, it is also conceivable to bet on a home win including a goal conceded or that Salah and Co. will score in both halves

We see even more appealing value ahead of Liverpool’s quarter-final first leg against Atalanta Bergamo in a bet on four or more goals in the course of the match. The Over 3.5 is very attractively priced with a 2.15 at Happybet and takes into account many eventualities that could occur on Thursday evening. We therefore risk a bet of four units