Champions League: VfB Stuttgart Must be Wary of the Atalanta Assault

VfB Stuttgart vs Atalanta

Two of the most underrated teams in Europe are set to square off as VfB Stuttgart host Atalanta at the MHPArena on Wednesday evening.

These two teams are sitting just inside the Champions League playoff places after the three opening matchdays, with the visitors in 17^th place with five points and the hosts sitting in 18^th place with four points.

VfB Stuttgart and Atalanta are also undefeated in all competitions in the past few weeks, but only one of them can stay unblemished this week, unless they share the spoils.

This is one of the top games to watch out for in Matchday 4, as VfB Stuttgart and Atalanta love their attacking style of football. With that said, SBOTOP football fans should get their fair share of Champions League 2024 highlights from this contest.

 

Talking Points

VfB Stuttgart’s injury concerns

Despite serving his suspension against Bayer Leverkusen, Jeff Chabot is expected to remain sidelined for this game against Atalanta due to a muscular injury. The centre-back will be joined by Dan-Axel Zagadou, Luca Raimund, Yannik Keitel, and Jamie Leweling.

However, it’s not all bad for Sebastian Hoeneß’ side, as Leonidas Stergiou and Ameen Al-Dakhil were upgraded to probable after returning to training in these past few days.

Ermedin Demirovic, who has enjoyed a positive start to the campaign since arriving from Augsburg, will aim to regain his starting spot, but Hoeneß might stick with the strike partnership of Deniz Undav and El Bilal Toure, with Enzo Millot behind them pulling the strings.

Enzo Millot has already created 10 chances in the Champions League this season, which is the joint-most in the competition alongside PSG’s Lee Kang-In.

El Bilal Toure scored the winning goal in added time against Juventus a few weeks ago, and he’s out to prove something against his mother club, providing Hoeneß with a good lineup dilemma.

Moreover, VfB Stuttgart have been ultra-aggressive in the Champions League this season, as they have the second-most shot attempts in the competition (65) behind Manchester City (72).

 

Atalanta scoring goals for fun

Atalanta should give VfB Stuttgart a huge run for their money, as they also like to create and convert their attacking opportunities. As of this writing, La Dea boast the best attack in Italy this season since they’ve averaging 2.64 goals per game.

Since their goalless draw against Celtic on Matchday 3, Gian Piero Gasperini’s side have scored 11 goals (while only conceding once) in their last three Serie A matches.

Mateo Retegui and Ademola Lookman have been spectacular during that stretch, scoring seven goals combined. On Wednesday, they will likely be joined by Charles De Ketelaere in the final third.

Retegui is currently on top of the Serie A Golden Boot race with 11 league goals, making him the most dangerous man on the pitch. The 25-year-old forward has been so good for Atalanta that the team is not in a rush to bring back Gianluca Scamacca.

 

History

Wednesday marks the first time that VfB Stuttgart and Atalanta face off in all competitions.

VfB Stuttgart have already beaten a Serie A side in the Champions League this year, winning against Juventus 1-0 on Matchday 3, which is only their second win in their last 12 major European games against Italian sides (D4, L6).

Sebastian Hoeneß’ side hasn’t lost at home in all competitions since October 2023 (3-2 against Hoffenheim), their longest such run in 17 years.

Atalanta have kept three consecutive clean sheets in the Champions League so far this season, and they could do so in four consecutive games for the first time ever this Wednesday. This is a remarkable turnaround for La Dea after conceding 13 goals in six games across their last Champions League group stage in 2021-22.

 

Betting Tip

The Champions League 2024 odds predict a tight battle between VfB Stuttgart and Atalanta on Wednesday. Because they’re at home, VfB Stuttgart have the slight edge at 2.33, whereas Atalanta aren’t far behind at 2.58 in the 1X2 market.

Over 3.00 at 1.77, Over 3.25 at 2.00, Over 3.50 at 2.21, Total Goal 2-3 at 2.21, or even Total Goal 4-6 at 2.45 are also worth looking at. However, we’ll ultimately go for Draw at 3.50 because we believe these two teams will cancel each other out.

Meanwhile, a low-scoring game is a distant possibility, but it could give bettors a huge payday. The best example of this is going for a Correct Score of 0-0 because of its generous payout of 21.00.

   

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