Club Brugge vs. Atalanta BC: UCL Match Preview, Odds & Prediction

After eking through to the knockout round, Club Brugge will want to lead in their Champions League playoff against Atalanta BC from the first leg when the teams square off on Wednesday at Jan Breydelstadion.

Brugge almost averted elimination, while La Dea nearly gained straight admission to the last 16, where the tie's victors would face either Lille or Aston Villa.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Club Brugge negotiated the first 36-team league round to continue their Champions League adventure even if they lost 3-1 to Manchester City on the last matchday.

Arriving in 24th place, the last qualifying berth, the Belgian team exceeded most expectations by beating Villa and Sporting Lisbon along the road.

Losing to City eventually broke Brugge's 20-match unbeaten run, which included no less than 15 victories, but they survived and may now make just a second Champions League knockout-round appearance.

Having been pounded 7-1 on aggregate by Benfica two years ago, when they were left in the last 16, fans of the Blauw-Zwart will hope their club makes a much greater effort at moving on this time.

Claiming a fourth victory in five years, head coach Nicky Hayden helped Brugge become domestic champions for the 19th time in 2023–24, posing the closest rivals to Pro League leaders Genk.

Also, into the Belgian Cup final, they broke a remarkable five-game losing run by defeating 10-man Leuven on Saturday; Gustaf Nilsson scored his fifth goal in as many league games.

Hayen's men have not scored in one of their previous thirty games—against Juventus last month. Brugge has already faced AC Milan this season, lost 3-1 at San Siro, and now their first encounter with another Italian team awaits.

Aiming to break that pattern in midweek, Winless in 15 games against Serie A opponents will have a notable triumph against Milan 22 years ago to underline.

Wednesday's hosts just reached the top 24; Atalanta kept a beloved top-eight position within their reach until the penultimate matchday; they came near to reclaiming it in the waning minutes of last month's spectacular draw with Barcelona.

The Nerazzurri will now participate in the playoffs even though they battled back from behind twice at Montjuic and failed to find a late victory, dropping to ninth place.

Final season's Europa League champions may feel hard done by having recorded two victories by five-goal margins and kept Barca and Arsenal to draws; nevertheless, they must now choose the long path to reach the final 16.

With an improved defensive record, Gian Piero Gasperini's club is focused on going that far for a third time in four Champions League outings.

More well-known for their offensive ability, Atalanta scored a club-record 126 goals during 2024; their fourth-best record overall is shown by their league phase conceding only six times. Moreover, only Arsenal let fewer shots on target.

They have only lost once so far, at home to defending champions Real Madrid, while on the road, overcoming Shakhtar Donetsk, Stuttgart, and Young Boys.

But after a poor start to 2025: top of Serie A at the beginning of the year, they have since won only three of their past 11 games across all competitions, including a loss to Bologna in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals, thereby ending the 15-match unbeaten record of the Bergamo side.

Now all but out of the championship race, Atalanta at least guaranteed their hold on third place as red-hot striker Mateo Retegui scored four of their five goals in Saturday's triumph against Hellas Verona - and the Capocannoniere hopeful will attempt to grab more in Bruges.

Club Brugge x Atalanta BC Team News

In sharp contrast to his opposite number, Club Brugge coach Nicky Hayden could be fortunate to have a perfect bill of health.

Hayen has chosen Nordin Jackers for the Belgian Cup this season, although veteran custodian Simon Mignolet will start behind a Brugge defense line, including 20-year-old Joel Ordonez.

So far this campaign, the youngest player to finish every minute of every Champions League game is the Colombian defender. Only Charles De Ketelaere, aged under 21, has ever spent more minutes for the Blau-Zwart in Europe's premier championship.

Having joined Club Brugge at seven and scored 26 first-team goals before joining Milan in 2022, the latter will likely start against his former side on Wednesday. De Ketelaere has participated in nine Champions League strikes this season, surpassing the top marksman, Mateo Retegui.

Between 2019 and 2021, Odilon Kossounou made 55 appearances for Brugge, earning two league championships; unfortunately, he currently appears on La Dea's extended injured list. While Sead Kolasinac, first-choice custodian Marco Carnesecchi, and Europa League final hero Ademola Lookman also miss out, Gianluca Scamacca and Giorgio Scalvini are scheduled to miss the remainder of this season.

Still, fresh additions Daniel Maldini and Stefan Posch should be ready as they have been enrolled for the knockout stages.

Our Predictions

Atalanta to win & uner 3.5 goals @ 2.70 on Sky247.ng

While Club Brugge has shown difficulty for many visitors, Atalanta is an outstanding team away from home and can close shop if necessary. The Nerazzurri should lead thinly entering next week's second leg, as they have the firepower to score at least once.

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