Bayern Munich vs. Atalanta: Preview, team news as Lookman's former club face UCL exit

The Allianz Arena hosts the second leg of a last-16 tie on Wednesday evening that, in football terms, has already been put to bed, Afrik-Foot reports.

Bayern Munich produced a dominant 6-1 victory in Bergamo on March 10, with goals from Josip Stanišić, Michael Olise (two), Serge Gnabry, Nicolas Jackson and Jamal Musiala, before Mario Pašalić pulled a late consolation back for Atalanta deep in stoppage time. The scale of the display left even the most optimistic Bayern supporters taken aback, so one-sided and relentless was the performance from the opening minutes.

Yet the return leg carries its own complications.

Bayern face an unprecedented goalkeeper shortage, with Manuel Neuer, Jonas Urbig and Sven Ulreich all injured or in serious doubt, potentially handing a 16-year-old academy stopper the gloves at one of European football’s biggest occasions.

Harry Kane is expected to return after missing the first leg with a calf problem, while Atalanta must accomplish something no club has managed in the entire history of European competition.

Michael Olise, Bayern Munich vs Atalanta — MICHAEL OLISE, Bayern Munich. Photo by IMAGO

Match preview

Bayern followed their Bergamo rout with a Bundesliga trip to Bayer Leverkusen, where they were held to a 1-1 draw at the BayArena in a match disrupted by injuries and a red card.

The dropped points barely registered in the title race: Vincent Kompany’s side lead the Bundesliga by nine points from Borussia Dortmund, and recent form in the league has been dominant.

A 3-2 home win over Eintracht Frankfurt, a 3-2 victory in Dortmund and a 4-1 home rout of Borussia Monchengladbach confirm that Bayern’s domestic grip remains firm.

Atalanta’s recent run makes for far bleaker reading.

Raffaele Palladino’s side have failed to win any of their last five matches, accumulating three draws and two defeats in that period.

Bayern Munich v Atalanta — Photo by IMAGO

A 2-1 defeat at Sassuolo was followed by back-to-back 2-2 draws with Lazio and Udinese, the 6-1 thrashing at home in the first leg, and a 1-1 draw at Inter at the weekend.

Since the departure of Nigeria international Ademola Lookman to Atletico Madrid in January, Atalanta appear to miss something in attack. Across this entire Champions League campaign, Atalanta have scored only four goals away from home, the lowest tally of any side still remaining in the competition.

There is also a wall of historical fact standing in their way: no club in the history of European football has ever overturned a deficit of five goals or more at the knockout stage.

Bayern Munich vs. Atalanta: Head-to-head record

These two clubs had never met in the Champions League before this season’s 2025/26 edition.

Bayern Munich are participating in their 18th consecutive last-16, while this is only Atalanta’s third Champions League campaign, which explains the absence of any prior head-to-head record between them at this stage.

The only data point available is therefore the first leg last week, and it belonged entirely to the Bavarians.

Bayern registered 24 shots to Atalanta’s five and had built a three-goal lead within 25 minutes.

Bayern Munich team news: Goalkeeper crisis

The story dominating Bayern’s week has had little to do with their five-goal advantage.

Neuer is sidelined with a calf problem, Urbig sustained a concussion during the first leg in Bergamo, and Ulreich tore an adductor muscle in Saturday’s Bundesliga draw at Leverkusen.

Should neither Ulreich nor Urbig be cleared in time, the responsibility of guarding Bayern’s goal will fall to Leonard Prescott, a 16-year-old who has been included in the senior squad as a substitute for each of the club’s past two fixtures.

Were Prescott to start, he would become the youngest goalkeeper in Champions League history at 16 years and 176 days, surpassing the record held by Maarten Vandevoordt at 17 years and 287 days.

The young stopper developed through Bayern’s academy after leaving Union Berlin’s youth set-up in 2023.

Joshua Kimmich and Olise are both suspended, having each collected their third yellow card of the competition late in the first leg when the score already read 6-0.

UEFA declined to open further disciplinary proceedings against either player, and both will serve their automatic one-match ban before becoming available again for any quarter-final.

Kane is expected back in the starting line-up after being an unused substitute in Bergamo.The English striker has scored eight goals in nine Champions League appearances this season.

Alphonso Davies is not yet available and is not expected to return for two to three weeks, according to Canada head coach Jesse Marsch.

⚪ Bayern Munich — Team News

Out

✕ Manuel Neuer — calf injury
✕ Jonas Urbig — concussion (first leg)
✕ Alphonso Davies — injury (2–3 weeks)

Doubtful

? Sven Ulreich — adductor tear

Suspended

⊘ Joshua Kimmich — three yellow cards
⊘ Michael Olise — three yellow cards

Predicted XI (4-2-3-1) – Prescott; Stanišić, Upamecano, Tah, Laimer; Pavlovic, Goretzka; Karl, Gnabry, Luis Díaz; Kane

Atalanta squad news: Life without Lookman

Atalanta are without Giacomo Raspadori and Charles De Ketelaere through injury for the second leg.

Yunus Musah is suspended.Giorgio Scalvini, Atalanta’s most consistent performer in Serie A this season, missed the first leg through suspension and returns for the trip to Munich.

Young Nigerian defender Honest Ahanor could make his ninth Champions League appearance in what is increasingly an incredible campaign for the 18-year-old talent.

Predicted XI (4-4-2) – Carnesecchi; Zappacosta, Hien, Kolasinac, Bernasconi; Sulemana, de Roon, Pašalić, Zalewski; Krstović, Scamacca

Key Player Comparison

Bayern Munich

Harry Kane

Centre-forward · 32 years old

CL Goals
8

CL Appearances
8

Avg. League Rating
8.28

CL xG
4.94

Scoring Rate (CL)
1 goal / 112 mins

Atalanta

Gianluca Scamacca

Centre-forward · 26 years old

CL Goals
3

CL Appearances
9

Serie A Goals
8

Avg. League Rating
6.89

Recent CL Form
3 goals in 6 games

The Managers: Kompany and Palladino

Kompany has shaped a Bayern squad that plays with genuine purpose in every phase of the game, and the performance in Bergamo was the clearest expression of what he has built in Munich.

After the 6-1 win, the Belgian coach said: “That was the performance we hoped for. I’d even say we could’ve scored another goal or two.”

For the second leg at home, Kompany must reorganise a side missing two influential creative players in Kimmich and Olise, while managing a goalkeeping situation that has no real precedent in the modern game.

Vincent Kompany, Bayern Munich coach — Photo by IMAGO

Palladino took charge of Atalanta during a period of considerable transition, inheriting a squad that later lost key figures including Ademola Lookman, the Super Eagles forward who joined Atletico Madrid in the summer transfer window.

His tactical approach in the first leg drew criticism in the Italian press for being too passive against Bayern’s sustained pressure and man-to-man aggression.

After the defeat in Bergamo, Palladino said: “We’re annoyed, this isn’t what we wanted. We played against perhaps the best team in the world. Congratulations to them and their coach, they impressed me. We have to accept the result. We’re sorry to the fans.”

Atalanta will want to leave Munich with their heads held high, even if progression is well beyond reach.

Tactical preview

Bayern are expected to deploy a 4-2-3-1, though the double absence of Kimmich and Olise changes the texture of the side in midfield and on the right flank.

Lennart Karl, the 18-year-old who started Bayern’s Champions League fixture against PSV and registered an assist on that occasion, is the natural candidate to fill the right-wing berth.

Leon Goretzka or Tom Bischof are expected to partner Aleksandar Pavlovic in the double pivot.

One of Bayern’s most damaging weapons in Bergamo was the ability of Pavlovic and Kimmich to break lines: the two midfielders registered 20 and 13 progressive passes respectively, the highest figures of any player on the pitch.

Kimmich’s absence reduces that output, though Pavlovic carries enough quality to compensate through the middle of the park.

Atalanta are likely to work within a 4-4-2 or diamond midfield shape, with Gianluca Scamacca and Luka Krstović up front and a compact block looking to deny the space in behind the defensive line.

Having scored only four away goals across this entire European campaign, the Italians’ defensive discipline on the road remains their strongest suit.

The key weakness Atalanta showed in the first leg was in defensive transitions, and Bayern’s forwards will look to exploit that same vulnerability on Wednesday. The wildcard element of the evening sits in the Bayern goal.

A 16-year-old with no senior professional experience facing a side with nothing to lose will generate pressure of a different kind, and Atalanta’s forwards will test Prescott early should the teenager indeed be handed his debut.

That said, Bayern’s five-goal cushion will provide an unusual degree of calm within their defensive structure, however the opening exchanges unfold.

Betting Tips — Bayern Munich vs. Atalanta

★Over 3.5 Goals
Bayern have exceeded 2.5 goals in eight of their last 10 matches across all competitions. Atalanta have nothing to lose and could attack freely from early on.

~1.90

Kane to Score
The English striker returns after missing the first leg and has scored in three of his last six Champions League appearances this season.

~1.70

Both Teams to Score
Atalanta will want to leave Munich with dignity intact, and the lack of competitive pressure on either side could produce an open match.

~1.70

Bayern to Qualify (to combine)
Progression is mathematically near-certain. Best used in combination with another selection to build a worthwhile accumulator.

~1.05

Score Prediction

Bayern Munich

3

–

Atalanta

1

Bayern qualify 9–2 on aggregate

Why 3–1?
Bayern, even without Olise and Kimmich, remain significant favourites at home against a side in poor form. Kane’s return adds a genuine focal point to the attack, and Kompany’s side have won 16 of their 18 home matches in all competitions this season. Atalanta, with nothing left to play for, may approach this with the freedom that comes from having no pressure, and they have the forwards to trouble a makeshift back line. The Italian side have won only three of their last 10 away fixtures in the Champions League, conceding nine goals and scoring five across that run. A comfortable Bayern win, with Atalanta finding the net once, is the most likely outcome at the Allianz Arena.