Fiorentina vs Atalanta: The opponents are most likely to score one goal each

Atalanta achieved a long-awaited victory, having succeeded in the Europa League match against Greek Olympiacos at home. As early as two days after that, the Black and Blues will play away against Fiorentina in Serie A. Will Atalanta be able to consolidate their success, or will the team not have enough strength? Let's choose a few options for betting.

Fiorentina won an important victory

If Atalanta played on Thursday, Fiorentina had a few extra days to prepare and rest. The Violets visited La Spezia on Monday, the former team of their former coach Vincenzo Italiano, and managed to win there. Although the loss was quite real - Sofyan Amrabat sent the decisive goal in the 89th minute. 2-1 – with some trouble, but the Violets have shown they can consistently win without Dusan Vlahovic.

Krzysztof Piatek netted the first goal against Spezia. The Pole could have scored twice, but failed to convert the penalty kick. Interestingly, such a mishap happened to the forward for the second game in a row. Prior to the away match with Spezia, Fiorentina faced Atalanta in the Italian Cup quarter-final. There, Piatek sealed his double – first he realized a spot kick and then put the ball into the net after the unrealized penalty.

Atalanta won for the first time in a month

Having beaten Olympiacos in the first leg of the Europa League play-off, Atalanta secured their first win in a month. Since that winning game against Venezia in the Cup, the Black and Blues have managed to play three draws against the giants: 0-0 with Lazio and Inter, and 1-1 with Juventus; lose at home to Cagliari in Serie A; and they also were knocked out of the Cup by Fiorentina.

The match against Olympiacos could also have gone badly for Atalanta – after the first half, they were losing 0-1. In the end, it helped that Gian Piero Gasperini tried to influence the game with substitutions. In the second half, Koopmeiners and Atalanta's newcomer Jeremie Boga came on instead of Pessina and Muriel. It worked in the 61st minute, when Djimsiti scored on Koopmeiners' assist. It was also he who put Bergamo ahead after just two minutes without an assist. There were no more goals scored, the match ending 2-1. Now, in the return leg in Greece, Atalanta only need to reel in the already acclaimed 0-0 scoreline.

Injured reserve

• Fiorentina: –
• Atalanta: Josip Ilicic, Aleksei Miranchuk, Duvan Zapata, Jose Palomino will not play.

Head-to-head encounters

In the first part of the championship, Fiorentina outplayed Atalanta 2-1 in Bergamo. Dusan Vlahovic scored both goals for the Violets, while Duvan Zapata netted the penalty for Atalanta.

The penalty shoot-out also decided the outcome of the recent Cup quarter-final. Once again in Bergamo, Fiorentina bounced back from 1-2 to win 3-2. Krzysztof Piatek, the "new Vlahovic" scored two goals and Nikola Milenkovic scored the decisive goal on 90+4.

Expert Betting Tips

Djimsiti's double against Olympiacos once again highlighted Atalanta's offensive crisis. Without Duvan Zapata and Josip Ilicic, the team still doesn't know how to create scoring chances. The only domestic match in a month where Atalanta managed to score twice was against Fiorentina in the Cup. It is not surprising – the Violets concede in almost every match. Still, they tend to score as regularly. Piatek scored three times in the last two games. And Arthur Cabral, the Brazilian rookie from Swiss club Basel, has yet to show his worth. Aleksandr Kokorin could also compete with the forwards, but unfortunately the Russian failed to become a full-fledged member of the Florentine club's rotation. Aleksei Miranchuk, by the way, is also out – the Russian midfielder is injured. So this time the meeting between Fiorentina and Atalanta will be played without the Russians.

Prediction: two or three penalties in the third face-off between the rivals this season are unlikely to be awarded. The teams will, of course, exchange goals as they always do, but each of them will probably score only once. In addition, it is doubtful that Atalanta will lose to Fiorentina for the third time; but it will also be difficult for the Black and Blues to win after the Europa League, so a draw is quite likely to happen.

Betting options

• BTTS+TU (5.5) for 1.78;
• X for 3.40;
• Correct Score 1-1 for 6.50.