Atalanta v Bayer Leverkusen: Prediction, Tips and Odds

An intriguing clash is on the cards in the Europa League final on Wednesday and Racing Post's Liam Flin has picked out his three best bets for the encounter between Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Atalanta v Bayer Leverkusen betting tips and predictions

Bayer Leverkusen to win - 4/5

Anything can happen in a one-off final but it would be foolish to ignore Bayer Leverkusen's sensational season ahead of their Europa League final on Wednesday.

Victory over Atalanta would put Bayer Leverkusen one win away from completing an invincible treble with Xabi Alonso's men having already won the Bundesliga without losing a game while they have the DFB-Pokal final to look forward to on Saturday.

They face Kaiserslautern in that domestic final and Wednesday's clash is undoubtedly their toughest remaining game of the season, but Bayer can get the job done in 90 minutes.

Die Werkself are unbeaten in 51 matches in all competitions this season and knocked out accomplished West Ham and Roma sides in the previous two rounds of the Europa League.

Atalanta can be a tough nut to crack but they are nowhere near as consistent as Bayer Leverkusen.

La Dea lost the Italian Cup final to Juventus last Wednesday and have suffered 10 defeats in Serie A this season with two matches left to play.

To their credit, they overcame European heavyweights Liverpool and Marseille to make it this far, but those two sides have been a little erratic this season and a more consistent and confident Leverkusen should be too strong.

Half with most goals - Second - 21/20

Bayer Leverkusen are the superior team heading into this final but they could take time to break down Atalanta and there could be a cagey start to the match in Dublin, particularly given what is at stake.

But after the break, the German champions are expected to grow into the contest and a bet on the second half to be the highest-scoring could pay off.

Leverkusen have had a penchant for scoring late goals this season, netting in the 82nd and 97th minutes of their semi-final second leg with Roma to preserve their unbeaten record with a 2-2 draw.

And in their quarter-final tie with West Ham, their goals across both legs came in the 83rd, 89th and 91st minutes.

In the league, meanwhile, Leverkusen scored 52 of their 89 league goals in the second half and that is when this game could really explode into life.

Granit Xhaka to be carded - 13/5

Granit Xhaka did not start Bayer Leverkusen's final Bundesliga match of the season against Augsburg on Saturday but he is sure to be in the starting lineup for the Europa League final.

The Swiss international has been key to Leverkusen's campaign but he can be drawn into the odd cynical foul and he could go into the book.

It is likely to be a cagey and feisty affair with so much on the line and Xhaka was booked on five occasions in the Bundesliga this season.

Xhaka was also one of three players to be given a yellow card in the first leg of Leverkusen's Europa League semi-final with Roma and he is not afraid to get stuck into a challenge.

Marten de Roon, Jose Luis Palomino and Isak Hien are among the most likely to be carded in this game with all three priced at 6/4 to be booked, but there looks to be plenty of value in the former Arsenal enforcer having his name taken.

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Atalanta v Bayer Leverkusen odds

Atalanta - 16/5
Draw - 27/10
Bayer Leverkusen - 4/5

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.