Atalanta Bergamo vs Juventus
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Today’s free tip is in the Italian Serie A encounter between Atalanta Bergamo and Juventus.
I’m a big Atalanta fan but they’ve pissed me off a lot of late. They’re making more mistakes than usual and it keeps costing them. They’re out of the Coppa Italia because they couldn’t sit on a lead against Vlahovic-less ACF Fiorentina, for example. I was more annoyed by the Cagliari performance though. They walked into that counter trap so many times that a red card and goal was inevitable in the end.
The worst part is that Atalanta genuinely don’t look like they’ll score goals at the moment, which is a staggering statement to be able to make. I’m sure they’ll rectify it in due course, especially after intelligent signings like Boga. They really don’t have a finisher at the moment though. Zapata is their only authentic striker, and he’s had injury problems of late – he’s out tonight too. Subsequently, the ball doesn’t stick up front so no matter how clever Muriel’s runs are, or Pasalic’s movement from midfield, or how intricate Ilicic’s passing is, they just don’t hurt teams anywhere near enough.
The beauty of Atalanta was always their midfield. They had a big distraction up front and then midfielders to support the cause – and it was generally the midfielders that did the damage. Without that distraction up front though, their opponents just need to shut down the space between lines and Atalanta have nothing but set pieces and long range punts to offer. It’s a real problem for them, especially as it’s not just Zapata that is out at the moment but Miranchuk too.
Their defence looks ropey too. Goalkeeper Musso is suspended, and both Palomino and Pezzella are doubts. Palomino has been their best defender this season; Djimsiti is too rash, and Toloi hasn’t been at his best. If Palomino fails, they’re in deep shit. I think they are anyway, to be honest – they just don’t have an attack right now. As much as I love this team and their infectious energy levels, I fear for them whilst they’re playing as they are.
I’m not even a big fan of Allegri’s work with Juventus. I genuinely think he takes them back a step rather than forward but it is what it is. He does know Serie A well by now, and Juventus’ players seem to respond favourably to him, which is half of the battle. It just bothers me that whenever I watch Juventus play, they almost never deserve to win. They still do, of course, but it worries me that they don’t dominate teams as they once did. Their defence always seems to be easier to breach than it used to be too.
Still, this team is very clinical; I have to give them that. The beauty of this team is that it’s never just one man carrying them. Cuadrado, Locatelli, Morata, Kean, Dybala, Bernardeschi, Chiesa, McKennie, Rabiot, and now Vlahovic too – they’re all good in front of goal. I’m not as blown away by the new Serbian arrival as everybody else seems to be but Juventus tend to invest very shrewdly, and if they’ve made that call then it’s going to be a good one. He’s already bagged on his debut, and it seems like Morata’s days may be numbered because of it.
Whether they deserve it or not, Juventus have routes to goal; that’s the point here. Their hosts do not, at least for the present. Juventus can be playing a perfectly even 50/50 game and suddenly take the lead through some Chiesa magic or a moment of inspiration from Dybala. They make the most of their opportunities, which is where their contemporaries often let themselves down. Now they’ve loaded their midfield with engines and their attack with different threats, they’re going to cause teams a lot of problems – and Atalanta should not be an exception to the rule.
Juventus tend to record favourable results in Bergamo, and I believe they will tonight too.
Verdict: Juventus to win with draw no bet at 21/25.
Sunday’s Thoughts
As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Australian A-League:
Central Coast Mariners vs Perth Glory
Brisbane Roar vs Macarthur FC
Austrian Bundesliga:
Hartberg vs Admira Wacker
LASK vs Austria Klagenfurt
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Racing Genk vs Standard de Liege
Union Saint-Gilloise vs Sint-Truiden
Club Brugge vs Sporting Charleroi
Germinal Beerschot vs Kortrijk
Bulgarian A PFG:
Arda vs Ludogorets Razgrad
Lokomotiv Sofia 1929 vs CSKA Sofia
Croatian Prva Liga:
Hajduk Split vs Slaven Koprivnica
NK Osijek vs Rijeka
Czechia Liga 1:
Karvina vs Baumit Jablonec
Slovacko vs Slavia Prague
Sigma Olomouc vs Mlada Boleslav
Sparta Prague vs Viktoria Plzen
English Premier League:
Burnley vs Liverpool
Newcastle United vs Aston Villa
Tottenham Hotspur vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
Leicester City vs West Ham United
French Ligue 1:
AS Monaco vs Lorient
Angers SCO vs Racing Club Strasbourg
Stade Brestois vs Troyes
Clermont Foot 38 vs AS Saint-Etienne
FC Nantes Atlantique vs Stade de Reims
Racing Club Lens vs Girondins de Bordeaux
Metz vs Olympique de Marseille
German Bundesliga:
Union Berlin vs Bv09 Borussia Dortmund
TSG Hoffenheim vs Arminia Bielefeld
German Bundesliga 2:
Fortuna Dusseldorf vs Schalke 04
Hannover 96 vs Darmstadt 98
Ingolstadt vs SV Sandhausen
Hungarian Liga 1:
Budapest Honved vs Fehervar
Zalaegerszegi TE vs Ferencvaros
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Hapoel Haifa vs Bnei Sakhnin
Beitar Jerusalem vs Maccabi Petah Tikva
Italian Serie A:
AC Milan vs Sampdoria
Empoli vs Cagliari
Genoa vs Salernitana
Hellas Verona vs Udinese
Sassuolo vs AS Roma
Atalanta Bergamo vs Juventus
Italian Serie B:
Brescia vs Alessandria
Lecce vs Benevento
Ascoli vs Como
Dutch Eredivisie:
Go Ahead Eagles vs AZ Alkmaar
Sparta Rotterdam vs Willem II
RKC Waalwijk vs Feyenoord Rotterdam
SC Heerenveen vs NEC Nijmegen
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs FC Twente Enschede
Portuguese Liga 1:
Famalicao vs Moreirense
Belenenses vs Vitoria Guimaraes
Vizela vs Gil Vicente
Portuguese Liga 2:
CD Nacional de Madeira vs Penafiel
Sporting Covilha vs SL Benfica II
Varzim vs Leixoes Matosinhos
Farense vs Academico Viseu
Romanian Liga 1:
Arges vs CS Mioveni
UTA Arad vs Dinamo Bucharest
FCSB vs Chindia Targoviste
Spanish Primera Liga:
Deportivo Alaves vs Valencia
Levante vs Real Betis Baloimpie
Real Sociedad vs Granada
RCD Espanyol vs Barcelona
Swiss Super League:
Young Boys Bern vs FC Basel
Luzern vs FC Sion
FC Zurich vs Lugano
Swiss Challenge League:
Aarau vs FC Thun
Turkish Super Lig:
Sivasspor vs Yeni Malatyaspor
Antalyaspor vs Fatih Karagumruk
Kasimpasa vs Alanyaspor
Trabzonspor vs Konyaspor
Enjoy your free betting tips!