Atalanta vs. Arsenal lineups, expected starting 11, confirmed team news and injuries: Saka in race to make UCL opener

Dom Farrell

Atalanta vs. Arsenal lineups, expected starting 11, confirmed team news and injuries: Saka in race to make UCL opener image

Arsenal begin their UEFA Champions League campaign with a tricky trip to Atalanta on Thursday.

Gian Piero Gasperini's side finished fourth in Serie A last season and also swept to Europa League glory with a 3-0 win over Xabi Alonso's previously indomitable Bayer Leverkusen side in Dublin.

La Dea have endured a mixed start to 2024/25. Real Madrid beat them 2-0 to lift the UEFA Super Cup and they concluded August with a 4-0 defeat at Inter Milan. Gasperini's men responded with a 3-2 weekend victory over Fiorentina, with Europa League final hat-trick hero Ademola Lookman scoring decisively.

Arsenal battled to a 1-0 win over Tottenham in the north London derby despite some injury and suspension headaches, but did that triumph come at a further cost for Mikel Arteta?

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Atalanta vs. Arsenal lineups, predicted starting 11, team news

Ex-Arsenal man Sead Kolasinac and Berat Djimsiti have returned from their respective thigh problems to ease Gasperini's defensive concerns, although Rafael Toloi and Ben Godfrey remain absent.

Italy internationals Gianluca Scamacca and Giorgio Scalvini are long-term absentees.

Atalanta predicted XI (3-4-2-1, right to left): Carnesecchi (GK) — Djimsiti, Hein, Kolasinac — Bellanova, Ederson, De Roon, Ruggeri — De Ketelaere, Lookman — Retegui

Injured: Toloi (muscular), Godfrey (back), Scamacca, Scalvini (both ACL)
Suspended: None

MORE: All the latest Champions League news | How does the 2024/25 Champions League work? 

Declan Rice will return from his domestic suspension on a night when Arteta might have to cast an eye towards Sunday's titanic Premier League clash with Manchester City.

Riccardo Calafiori returned to training on Wednesday following a thigh injury but Arteta still has little room for manoeuvre in his back four. Martin Odegaard is set to miss out once again with his ankle injury, although Bukayo Saka is set to start after suffering with cramps towards the end of the derby against Tottenham.

Gabriel Jesus came off the bench versus Spurs and might earn his first start since sustaining a thigh injury, while there might also be a full debut for Raheem Sterling.

Arsenal predicted XI (4-3-3, right to left): Raya (GK) — White, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber — Partey, Jorginho, Rice — Saka, Jesus, Sterling

Injured: Odegaard (ankle), Calafiori (calf), Merino (shoulder), Tierney (thigh), Tomiyasu (knee), Zinchenko (calf)
Suspended: None

Atalanta vs. Arsenal live stream, TV channel

Here's how to watch this Champions League match across selected areas of the world's major regions:

RegionTVStreaming
USATUDN USA, UniMasParamount+Fubo, ViX, TUDN.com, Univision Now, TUDN App
CanadaDAZNFubo
UKTNT Sports 1discovery+
AustraliaStan Sport
IndiaJioTV, Sony LIV

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Dom Farrell

Dom Farrell Photo

Dom is the senior content producer for Sporting News UK. He previously worked as fan brands editor for Manchester City at Reach Plc. Prior to that, he built more than a decade of experience in the sports journalism industry, primarily for the Stats Perform and Press Association news agencies. Dom has covered major football events on location, including the entirety of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup in Paris and St Petersburg respectively, along with numerous high-profile Premier League, Champions League and England international matches. Cricket and boxing are his other major sporting passions and he has covered the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Gennadiy Golovkin and Vasyl Lomachenko live from ringside.