Atalanta vs Marseille Europa League semi-final second leg preview: Where to watch, kick-off time, predicted line-ups

Atalanta and Marseille meet in the UEFA Europa League semi-final second leg on Thursday 9 May.

Where to watch Atalanta vs Marseille

Fans can find their local UEFA Europa League broadcast partner(s) here.

What do you need to know?

Conquerors of Liverpool in the quarter-finals, Atalanta were unable to hold on to their early lead at Stade de Marseille but will be confident of reaching a first ever European final when Jean-Louis Gasset's side visit Bergamo for the return leg. Another polished display in France extended La Dea's unbeaten away run in Europe to 11 matches, and they very nearly earned themselves a first-leg advantage when Aleksei Miranchuk fired narrowly wide late on.

Marseille have won their last three Europa League semi-final ties but will need to improve their away record to stand any chance of a trip to Dublin later this month. The 2017/18 finalists have won only one of their six games on foreign soil in the competition this season, losing at Villarreal in the last 16 and Benfica in the quarter-finals. Can Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was kept at bay by Atalanta in Thursday's 1-1 draw, rediscover his Europa League shooting boots to fire OM to victory in Italy?

Predicted line-ups

Atalanta: Musso; Scalvini, Hien, Gjimshiti; Zappacosta, De Roon, Éderson, Ruggeri; Koopmeiners; De Ketelaere, Scamacca

Marseille: Pau López; Merlin, Gigot, Balerdi, Clauss; Harit, Veretout, Kondogbia; Sarr, Aubameyang, Ndiaye

Form guide

Atalanta
Form (all competitions, most recent first): WDWWWL
Most recent result: Salernitana 1-2 Atalanta, 06/05, Italian Serie A

Marseille
Form (all competitions, most recent first): DWDDWL
Most recent result: Marseille 1-1 Atalanta, 02/05, Europa League semi-final first leg

Expert predictions

Paolo Menicucci, match reporter
Atalanta will try to make the home advantage count when they host Marseille in the return leg. Coach Gian Piero Gasperini was not satisfied with the performance of his team in Marseille when the Orobici were fortunate not concede the second goal after taking an early lead, but admitted that the 1-1 draw was a good result, especially because OM are very good at home. The Bergamo side will have the entire city pushing them this time around with the fans hoping to reach a historic final in Dublin. With striker Gianluca Scamacca in top form, the Bergamo side will attack, but they will have to do it with patience because OM are very dangerous on the counter.

What the coaches say

Gian Piero Gasperini, Atalanta coach: "The most important factor will be the collective. The atmosphere in Marseille was extraordinary, but now that factor will be in our favour. The support from ours fans has always been great, even if we have a smaller stadium. In terms of the value of the goal, this match is the most important in Atalanta's history."

Jean-Louis Gasset, Marseille coach: "In this squad, there are a lot of players who have played in big matches; internationals who know what this match means. Yes, we prepared for the possibility of a penalty shoot-out. From the start we will have to be ready and defend as well as we did at the Vélodrome. We know what we have to do, we are ready to go to the end of the night to make everyone happy! I have never played a semi-final of anything, so at my age, I think you can dream!"

Destination: Dublin

Sportsfile via Getty Images

The 2023/24 Europa League season will conclude at Dublin Arena in the Republic of Ireland on 22 May.