Atalanta vs Lyon
UEFA Europa League
Date: Thursday, 7th December 2017
Kick-off at 18:00 UK/ 19:00 CET
Venue: Citta del Tricolore (Reggio Emilia).

Both Atalanta and Lyon booked their tickets to the first knockout round of matchday 5 and their duel on Thursday will decide who go through as group winners.

Atalanta, who are returning to Europe for the first time since 1991, need a draw to win the group. While Lyon must win to get ahead of their Italian opponents. The Ligue 1 side reached the semi-finals of the competition last season where they lost to Ajax. They reached the knockout phase with a third placed finish in the UEFA Champions League group stage.

Meanwhile, the other two teams in the group Everton and Apollon Limassol are eliminated from the competition.

Both sides registered massive wins on matchday 5 – Atalanta 5-1 away at Everton and Lyon 4-0 at home against Apollon. Now they are locked on 11 points with 3 wins and 2 draws from their 5 matches so far.

Atalanta vs Lyon: Head-to-head

The reverse of the corresponding fixture which ended 1-1 is the lone meeting between the two sides. It was also Atalanta’s first ever UEFA fixture with a French club.

On the other hand, Lyon played Italian clubs on 22 other occasions and hold a moderate record of 8 wins, 6 draws and 9 losses. They bagged 4 wins and 2 draws during the 11 away visits to Italy, losing in 5.

Atalanta vs Lyon: Prediction

There is little to separate between the sides when you look at their form guide. While it is true that Atalanta had struggled to replicate the form that earn them a fourth placed finish in Serie A last season, they were pretty solid at home. They lost just 1 of their 9 games in all competitions and scored in all but once.

On the other hand, Lyon is not far behind as they picked up 9 wins from their last 11 games in all competitions. Also, their lone defeat away from home came at Paris Saint Germain.

Therefore, this is a closely contested battle and has the potential to be a thriller. I believe the safe options are from the goal markets.

Atalanta vs Lyon: Bet Tips

• Both teams to Score @ 1.53 with Betfair.


• Over 1.5 goals in the second half @ 1.90 odd.