Bayern against Atalanta: Stanisic still has a score to settle | OneFootball

FC Bayern start the knockout phase of the Champions League on Tuesday evening, but their first leg of the round of 16 will be against Atalanta Bergamo, who have proved to be an unpleasant opponent for German teams in recent years

The clash with the Italians also has a very personal significance for Josip Stanisic, as the Bayern defender still has unfinished business with the Serie A club

The Croatian international played in the 2024 Europa League final in a Bayer Leverkusen shirt – together with his current Bayern team-mate Jonathan Tah

Back then, Atalanta ran out clear 3-0 winners in Dublin, ending the Werkself’s impressive run, which had previously gone an entire season without defeat. „I definitely don’t want to lose to Atalanta again, whether it’s a final or a normal game,“ said Stanisic, looking ahead to the upcoming Champions League clash

The defeat has left a deep impression on the defender to this day

Atalanta with a strong record against German clubs

photo: IMAGO

Respect for the upcoming opponent is also high because Atalanta have regularly impressed against Bundesliga clubs in recent years

Since 2020, the club from Bergamo have faced German teams nine times, with the Italians coming away victorious six times, drawing once and losing just two games

Some of these encounters were also clear-cut: Eintracht Frankfurt, for example, were beaten 3-0 and VfB Stuttgart lost 2-0. Only Borussia Dortmund have won a recent encounter

Bayern coach Vincent Kompany has also analyzed the opponents in detail and sees a team that has followed a clear game plan for years. „That has been a big part of their success over many years,“ explained the Belgian, referring to the Italians‘ intense one-on-one play

It is therefore clear to the Bayern coach that his team must not underestimate Atalanta under any circumstances. „It’s a team that believes it can do something special,“ emphasized Kompany

Bayern consider themselves well prepared

However, Munich are convinced that they are prepared for the Italians‘ style of play. Stanisic also sees parallels with the record champions‘ training work. „We know that we are facing a strong opponent who will play one-on-one across the whole pitch and go full throttle,“ explained the defender

At the same time, he doesn’t see this as a major disadvantage for his team: „We’ve been going full throttle every day in training for a year and a half and playing one-on-one – that’s nothing new for us.“

Kompany also recognizes tactical similarities between Atalanta and Borussia Dortmund, with the Italians often playing with a back three in possession and always looking to get deep down the flanks

Bayern have already found solutions against BVB this season, winning the clash 3:2

In view of the record champions‘ strong season and their positive record against Italian teams, Munich go into the round of 16 as favourites. Nevertheless, Kompany expects a challenging match. „Every soccer expert knows that it will be an interesting game,“ explained the Bayern coach.