Atalanta v Marseille

Atalanta vs Marseille Preview

Last week's 1-1 draw away from home at French Ligue 1 counterparts Marseille earned Italian side Atalanta a creditable draw at the Orange Velodrome and has now also handed Gian Piero Gasperini's side a slight advantage heading into this return leg with home advantage at their Gewiss Stadium with this upcoming 2nd leg seeming to be evenly poised.

That draw in France last week also extended Atalanta's unbeaten run in all competitions to four games as the hosts have collected three wins within this period along with the draw against Marseille; victories in the Italian domestic Serie A against Monza and Empoli along with a Coppa Italia win against Fiorentina by way of a resounding 4-1 victory should give Atalanta plenty of confidence heading into this Europa League return leg on Thursday night.

The bigger picture shows Atalanta have been dealt just three defeats out of their last 13 matches in all competitions, two of which were dealt to them on their travels and although the Italian hosts were handed a 1-0 defeat at home by Liverpool in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, Atalanta had already registered a comprehensive 3-0 win in the 1st leg at Anfield.

Results on home soil at their Gewiss Stadium have also been impressive as Atalanta have collected no fewer than 11 wins from their last 14 home games in all competitions.

Despite not being able to capitalise fully with home advantage under their belts in last week's 1st leg of this Europa League semi-final, Marseille nevertheless extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to five matches overall, a sequence of results that include a win on penalties against Benfica in the quarter-finals of this competition along with a 2-1 home win against Lens in the domestic Ligue 1.

Marseille have also drawn with Toulouse and Nice in the French top flight along with last week's stalemate with Atalanta, but the French visitors had also suffered a dismal period of results which culminated in a miserable five-match losing streak in all competitions.

Jean-Louis Gasset's side slipped to worrying defeats at the hands of Rennes, PSG and Lille on the domestic front in Ligue 1 along with Europa League defeats to Villarreal and Benfica, both of which were away from home, meaning the French visitors have managed to capture just two wins in their last 10 matches in all competitions.

Results away from home have been even worse where Marseille have been concerned as the Ligue 1 outfit have picked up just four wins in their previous 24 outings on their travels whilst also being handed 13 defeats in the process.

Atalanta v Marseille Verdict

Having won 11 of their last 14 home games, Atalanta look to be in pole position to progress through to the final of the Europa League.

Therefore, our main bet will be Atalanta win @ 1.75

Other side bets worth considering:

Atalanta win & Over 2.5 goals @ 2.62

Correct Score: Atalanta 2-1 @ 8.50