PREVIEW: Atalanta look to put end to knockouts misery against Dortmund | OneFootball

Atalanta seek to end their losing run in the Champions League knockouts as they visit Borussia Dortmund for the first leg of the playoff round at Signal Igunda Park.

The Italian side have lost their last five knockout games in Europe’s top club competition, dating back to their quarter final exit at the hands of PSG 2019, but ended the league phase 13th – two points and places above Dortmund.

The Black and Yellow started their own campaign well, losing only once in their first six games, but back-to-back 2-0 losses to Tottenham Hotspur and Inter Milan, meant they only scraped 17th place and progression to the playoffs.

Dortmund have been doing much better at home, having won three Bundesliga games in a row and scoring nine goals during said run.

Their latest game, a 4-0 win over Mainz, helped them to stay within six points of serial German champions Bayern Munich and give their fans hope of a first domestic title since the 2011/12 season.

Under the leadership of former Bayern coach Niko Kovac, Dortmund have become a force to be reckoned with and have lost just one league match in the past 30 matches – stretching back to March 2025.

But they’ll take even more confidence from losing just twice at home in 22 Champions League matches, as they close in on 100 Champions League wins.

Julian Ryerson remains a set-piece specialist, delivering four assists last weekend, with Serhou Guirassy finishing off two of them.

Dortmund’s European campaign has seen goals spread across the squad, with ten different players finding the net. Guirassy, Felix Nmecha, and Julian Brandt have each scored three times.

Dortmund’s is boosted as Nico Schlotterbeck, who has been serving a suspension in Germany, is free to play and 22-year-old Swedish left back Daniel Svensson is back after a ban in Europe.

Marcel Sabitzer has recovered from a calf injury and might start, but captain Emre Can is still out with a groin injury.

Their history with Atalanta dates back to the 2017-18 Europa League, where Dortmund advanced on aggregate, beginning with a 3-2 victory at home.

Even though Dortmund’s visitors had late losses against Athletic Bilbao and Union Saint-Gilloise, their earlier wins had already secured their place in the playoff stage.

Since then, the team from Bergamo have not lost in four games, including a strong 3-0 win over Juventus to reach the Coppa Italia semi-finals.

Their Serie A campaign overall has been impressive, occupying sixth place with seven wins and two draws to start 2026 and winning 2-0 at Lazio last time out.

Head coach Raffaele Palladino has brought new energy to a team that struggled under Ivan Juric, who had replaced the well-known Gian Piero Gasperini, the coach behind Atalanta’s 2024 Europa League win.

While Palladino does not have as much top-level experience as Kovac, he did lead Fiorentina as far as the Conference League semi-finals last season.

Atalanta have had big wins over Club Brugge, Marseille, Chelsea, and Eintracht Frankfurt, who they cruised past by three goals to nil.

However, they suffer from a poor record in the Champions League knockouts and exited the competition following a heavy 5-2 loss to Brugge in last year’s playoffs.

Atalanta are forced to go without has to play without Charles De Ketelaere, who has chipped in with six goals, 20 chances created, and 11 successful dribbles in the group stage, after undergoing knee surgery.

To replace him, their boss Palladino signed Giacomo Raspadori in January, and the Italian forward will play with either Nikola Krstovic or Gianluca Scamacca up front.

Odilon Kossounou, the only Atalanta player to start every Champions League game this season, has not played much in Serie A recently, so it isn’t clear if he will feature in the starting lineup.

Possible Borussia Dortmund lineup: Kobel; Sule, Anton, Bensebaini; Ryerson, Bellingham, Nmecha, Svensson; Brandt, Beier; Guirassy