Atalanta vs Bayern München Champions League preview: Where to watch, predicted line-ups, form, coaches' thoughts

The UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie between Atalanta and Bayern München kicks off in Bergamo on Tuesday.

Where to watch the game on TV

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

What you need to know

A remarkable turnaround saw Atalanta progress at Borussia Dortmund's expense in the knockout phase play-offs and they now claim their reward – a round of 16 tie against Dortmund's domestic rivals and league phase runners-up Bayern München, whom they have never previously faced in UEFA competition.

Bayern powered their way through the league phase, recording seven wins – more than all except Arsenal – and scoring 22 goals (joint-second). They will hope to pick up where they left off and earn a seventh Champions League quarter-final berth of the decade while Atalanta set sights on their second-ever appearance in the last eight of this competition.

Possible line-ups

Atalanta: Carnesecchi; Kossounou, Hien, Kolašinac; Zappacosta, Pašalić, De Roon, Bernasconi; Samardžić, Zalewski; Scamacca

Bayern München: Urbig; Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Bischof; Pavlović, Kimmich; Olise, Musiala, Luis Díaz; Kane

Form guide

Atalanta

Form: DDLWWL (most recent result first)
Latest: Atalanta 2-2 Udinese, 07/03, Italian Serie A

Bayern München 

Form: WWWWWW
Latest: Bayern 4-1 Monchengladbach, 06/03, German Bundesliga

Views from the camps

Raffaele Palladino, Atalanta coach: "This will be a magical, wonderful night for us, as it's a dream to be in the Champions League last 16 against one of the strongest teams in the world. Dreams are there to be experienced. We want to enjoy it to the full and cause difficulties for Bayern. We are playing at home, so can repeat the performance against Borussia Dortmund."

Vincent Kompany, Bayern München coach: "We're playing against a physically strong team. There are similarities to our game in Dortmund [in late February], playing with a back three in possession and looking for runs in behind. The way Atalanta press has been impressive for several years. That's been a big part of their success. They're no easy opponent and nobody should underestimate them."

Reporter's view

Tommaso Sardella, match reporter 

The first-ever competitive meeting between these sides promises plenty of excitement and drama. Bayern head into the tie after an outstanding league phase, while their attacking numbers are even more impressive domestically, with 92 goals from their 25 Bundesliga matches. However, the mood in Bergamo is electric after La Dea knocked out Dortmund in the knockout phase play-offs, completing a dream comeback after losing 2-0 in Germany. Bayern may start as favourites, but Atalanta are not to be underestimated and have already shown they are capable of dreaming big.