Atalanta vs Bayer Leverkusen predictions: Europa glory for Leverkusen
- Bundesliga champions Leverkusen are unbeaten all season
- Atalanta are fifth in Serie A with two games to play
- Recommended bet: Bayer Leverkusen to win and both teams to score
Bayer Leverkusen are aiming to follow up their stunning Bundesliga title triumph by winning the Europa League in Dublin.
Atalanta stand in their way in the Irish capital and the Italians will likely be difficult opponents for Xabi Alonso's side but Leverkusen can come out on top to keep their treble dream alive.
Team news
Atalanta will be without injured skipper Martin De Roon, while Emil Holm has also been ruled out.
Rafael Toloi and Sead Kolasinac are both rated as doubts for the Italians for the Dublin showdown.
Leverkusen winger Florian Wirtz has been hampered by a thigh injury in recent weeks but is expected to be fit to start after coming on in the second half against Augsburg on Saturday.
Alonso has no other injury problems to contend with for the final and the Spanish coach is tipped to recall Piero Hincapie and Granit Xhaka, who were both also among the subs at the weekend.
The stats
After topping Group H, Leverkusen beat Qarabag 5-4 on aggregate in the last 16, then West Ham 3-1 overall in the quarter-finals and Roma 4-2 on aggregate in the semis.
Atalanta finished first in Group D, then saw off Sporting Lisbon 3-2 on aggregate in the last 16, before a 3-1 overall success against Liverpool in the quarters and a 4-1 aggregate victory over Marseille followed.
Both teams have scored in six of Leverkusen's last eight matches.
Atalanta have scored in eight of their last nine games in all competitions.
La Dea have scored in all but one of their Europa League games this season.
Prediction
Bayer Leverkusen have now gone a UEFA-record 51 games unbeaten in all competitions this season and are just two games away from an incredible treble with Kaiserslautern to come in the German Cup final after this Europa League showdown against Atalanta.
Alonso's side have made it to Dublin after seeing off Qarabag, West Ham and Roma in the knockout stages and it is no surprise to see them favourites for the final.
It might not be a routine success at the Aviva Stadium, though, as La Dea have also proved their strength in the competition so far, impressively beating Sporting, Liverpool and Marseille en route to the final.
Atalanta have scored in all but one of their Europa League matches this season, registering 22 goals in total in the competition so far, so they will expect to add to that tally against Leverkusen.
However, it will likely not be enough to stop the German side from securing their second trophy of the campaign as they strive for a superb invincible season.
Win up to £250,000 with LiveScore 6!
Win up to £250,000 with our free-to-play game, LiveScore 6!
