Real Madrid are looking to salvage their UEFA Champions League campaign after a difficult start, and will need a win when they travel to northern Italy to take on Atalanta on Tuesday.
The title holders are currently in 24th place in the Champions League standings — the final spot for qualification to the knockout rounds — after losing three of their first five games of the tournament. Madrid have lost to Lille OSC , AC Milan , and most recently, Liverpool , and cannot afford to drop more points for the remaining three league-stage games.
Los Blancos' form in La Liga has been better, as they have reduced the gap between themselves and leaders FC Barcelona to only two points, while also benefiting from having a game in hand.
Carlo Ancelotti's side are fresh off a 3-0 win over Girona, with goals from Jude Bellingham , Kylian Mbappe and Arda Guler.
Atalanta, meanwhile, are having a season to remember so far, sitting first in Serie A on 34 points through 15 games. La Dea are fresh off big wins over AC Milan (2-1) and AS Roma (2-0), and have gone 14 games unbeaten in all competitions.
Atalanta's form on the continent has been superb as well, as Gian Piero Gasperini's side sit in fifth place in the Champions League table, with three wins and two draws, while only allowing one goal through five games.
The Bergamo-based club have won their last two UCL fixtures, defeating Young Boys Bern 6-1 and VfB Stuttgart 1893 e.V. 2-0. Their biggest European challenge of the season came in the form of Arsenal , with whom they settled for a 0-0 draw on Matchday 1.
Where to Watch Real Madrid vs Atalanta
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When: Tuesday, December 10 – 3PM ET / 12PM PT
Where: Gewiss Stadium. Bergamo
TV/Streaming in the United States: CBS Sports, Paramount+
TV/Streaming in Canada: DAZN
Atalanta Projected Lineup vs Real Madrid
Ademola Lookman in action for Atalanta
Atalanta will give Real Madrid's defense plenty of headaches on Tuesday, thanks to the high-flying front-three of Ademola Lookman, Charles de Ketelaere and Mateo Retegui.
Retegui is the club's leading scorer this season, with 14 goals in all competitions. Lookman (10 goals, 5 assists) and De Ketelaere (5 goals, 9 assists) have also been in great form this year, making Atalanta the highest scoring team in Italy in 2024-25.
Gasperini's fluid system will see the wing-backs play a big role in the attack, and look out for the rare overlapping center-back in this game.
Gianluca Scamacca, Davide Zappacosta and Juan Cuadrado will not be available to face Madrid.
Atalanta predicted lineup (3-4-2-1): Marco Carnesecchi (GK) – Berat Djimsiti, Isak Hien, Sead Kolasinac – Raoul Bellanova, Marten De Roon, Ederson, Matteo Ruggeri – Ademola Lookman, Charles De Ketalaere – Mateo Retegui.
Real Madrid Projected Lineup vs Atalanta
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The Galacticos will get a big name back for the midweek clash in the form of Vinicius Jr, who has missed the last four matches with a hamstring injury.
Rodrygo should also be back in the lineup after missing out on the win over Girona, which means he'll once again form a front-three with Vinicius and Mbappe.
Aurelien Tchouameni has returned to fitness and should be among the starters on Tuesday, while Fran Garcia should draw in at left-back for Ferland Mendy, who suffered a muscular injury on the weekend.
Eder Militao, David Alaba, Dani Carvajal and Eduardo Camavinga remain unavailable for selection.
Real Madrid predicted lineup (4-3-3): Thibaut Courtois (GK) – Lucas Vazquez, Raul Asencio, Antonio Rudiger, Fran Garcia – Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni, Jude Bellingham – Rodrygo, Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr.
Real Madrid vs Atalanta Head-to-Head History
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Real Madrid and Atalanta have only met on three previous occasions, with the Spanish giants claiming victory in each fixture. Madrid defeated their Italian rivals 4-1 on aggregate in a Champions League last-16 tie during the 2020-21 season.
Their most recent clash came in August 2024 in the UEFA Super Cup, as the Champions League holders beat the Europa League champions 2-0 in Warsaw.
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