Sporting Lisbon vs Atalanta Prediction & Betting Tips - Europa League

Prediction published on 06/03/2024, 08:30  by Ian John | Modified on 06/03/2024 at 08:35 in Europa League Predictions

Sporting Lisbon host Atalanta in the first leg of the Round of 16 in the Europa League this week. This will be the third meeting between the two teams, who featured in Group D together. Sporting come into this game in very good form. They are unbeaten in their last nine games winning seven of them and in addition to beating Benfica in the Portuguese Cup semi final 1st leg last week, they also went top of the table after Benfica's 5-0 loss at FC Porto and Sporting's 3-2 home win over Farense at the weekend. Ruben Amorim's team have been exceptionally strong this season domestically, dropping just 10 points in 23 games this season, also scoring a league high 66 goals, ten more than the next best team in Portugal. One notable aspect of their performances in Europe is their tendency to get better results on the road than at home, just as they did against Atalanta in the Group Stages. 

Atalanta will feel confident heading into this game having taken four points from their games with Sporting in the Group Stages, but Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini will be under no illusions as to the task facing his team, especially after suffering two successive defeats in their last two games and they are now without a win in their last three Serie A matches. Prior to that they had won all their last six games, scoring 19 goals in the process, conceding just 3. The Bergamo-based team have earned a reputation over the years as one of the most attack-minded Italian teams and they are usually a very dangerous team on the counter-attack, something which Lisbon will be only too aware of after their 2-1 home defeat to Atalanta in the Group Stages.