BERGAMO.- He real Madrid will face Atalanta on Tuesday in Bergamo on the sixth day of the Champions Leaguelocated in the twenty-fourth position, the last place that qualifies for the round of 16, so a new setback could be fatal for the whites.
The merengue team, current champion of the Champions League, is obliged to win or score against an Italian team on a roll and leader of its championship, in the first ‘match ball’ of the season, refereed by the Polish Szymon Marciniak.
A new defeat could leave the classification complicated for Carlo Ancelotti’s pupils, who have just beaten Girona 3-0 on Saturday in Montilivi, thanks to the good form of the Englishman Jude Bellingham, author of a goal and an assist, and also from the French striker Kylian Mbappé, who scored the same.
Vini and Rodrygo return
According to UEFA estimates, eight points could be enough to be among the top 24 that will remain in contention, so it would be enough for Real Madrid to add two points in the three remaining games: Atalanta, Salzburg and Brest.
But they are estimates, without certainties, since there are no precedents in a tournament that has changed format this season.
The Italian coach will have the return of Brazilians Rodrygo and Vinicius, already recovered from their respective injuries.
Rodrygo was dropped at the last minute in Saturday’s duel against Girona due to muscle problems, while Vinicius was able to return to training after suffering an injury to the femoral biceps in his left leg against Leganés on November 24.
And Bellingham, who retired with discomfort in Montilivi, is also in the squad, from which Dani Carvajal, the French Ferland Mendy and Eduardo Camavinga, the Austrian David Alaba and the Brazilian Militao are still absent.
The situation has changed a lot since Madrid and Lombardy met in the European Super Cup in August, with the Spanish champion winning 2-0.
On a streak
In the Champions League, Real Madrid has already suffered three defeats in five games (against Lille, Milan and Liverpool), plus another two in LaLiga, where the whites are two points behind the leader Barcelona.
Atalanta, coached by veteran Gian Piero Gasperini, has nine consecutive victories in the championship and 38 goals scored (2.5 on average per game), which has led it to lead Serie A.
And in the Champions League they are classified in 5th place, with 11 points, after three wins and two draws.
Their top scorer, Mateo Retegui, with twelve goals, leads the team and is already a fixture in Italy’s squad with Luciano Spalletti.
Characterized by high pressure and vertical rhythm, Atalanta also features the Belgian playmaker Charles De Katelaere and the Swedish central defender Isak Hein, from Hellas Verona, who is causing a sensation in the calcium.
