After a week dedicated solely to the Champions League and another to the Europa League, European football returns to its classic three-day format: Champions League on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by Europa League and Conference League on Thursday.
Atalanta will kick off Italy’s “European triple-header.” Jurić’s side, fresh from an encouraging league draw away to Juventus, faces Club Brugge today at 6:45 PM (CET). It won’t be a true rematch of last season’s knockout stage elimination — the stakes are lower this time — but it is certainly a chance for some sporting revenge and, above all, for Atalanta to get their Champions League campaign back on track after a tough opening loss in Paris.
Later tonight, at 9:00 PM, it’s Chivu’s Inter, who already impressed with an away win against Ajax in their opener. They now have a golden chance to maintain a perfect record through two group-stage rounds.
Tomorrow it’s Napoli and Juventus. Napoli host Sporting Lisbon at the Maradona, and only a win will do after their opening defeat to Manchester City. Juventus, meanwhile, travel to Villarreal for a tricky fixture. Don’t be fooled by the Yellow Submarine’s loss at Tottenham in their opener — in La Liga they are flying, sitting just behind Real Madrid and Barcelona. Both Napoli and Juventus play at 9:00 PM.
Thursday belongs to the Europa League, with Roma and Bologna both in action at 6:45 PM. Roma host Lille and Bologna face Freiburg. Both Italian sides will need to be sharp against solid European mid-tier clubs, who each opened with victories last week. On SMIT, you’ll also find an in-depth tactical preview of Roma-Lille in our brand-new Match Analyst column.
Finally, Fiorentina begin their Conference League campaign at 9:00 PM Thursday. For the Viola, this marks a fourth attempt to lift the trophy after twice falling just short in the final. Their opener at the Franchi is against Sigma Olomouc, currently eighth in the Czech league, trailing Slavia Prague — Inter’s Champions League opponent — by nine points. Not an impossible debut for Fiorentina, who enter the tournament as one of the clear favorites for the title.
L’articolo European Cups: A Three-Day Marathon for Italian Teams proviene da Soccer Made In Italy.
