2026-2027 Conference League: Atalanta vs. Hapoel Tel Aviv, Probable Lineups

The first official European match for Italian teams in the 2026-2027 season: Maurizio Sarri’s Atalanta will face Hapoel Tel Aviv at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo in the Conference League playoff for a spot in the group stage. The match kicks off at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, August 20, with Spanish referee Javier Alberola officiating.

Atalanta is the only Italian team still in contention for the main stage of Europe’s third-tier competition. For the Bergamo-based team, this marks their ninth appearance in European competitions in ten years: their best result was winning the 2023–2024 Europa League in the final in Dublin against Bayer Leverkusen (3-0), but Atalanta has also made its mark in the Champions League, reaching the quarterfinals in the 2019-2020 season and the round of 16 in 2020-2021 and 2025-2026.

Hapoel Tel Aviv has already played through two qualifying rounds for the Conference League, starting in the second round, where they defeated the Bulgarian side Ludogorets 2-0 on neutral ground in Miskolc, in Hungary, and drawing 2-2 on the road in Razgrad. In the next round, the Israeli team defeated Poland’s GKS Katowice, winning 2-0 in Hungary and limiting the damage in Poland with a manageable 2-1 loss.

Probable Lineups

ATALANTA (4-3-3): Carnesecchi; Bellanova, Kristensen, Scalvini, Bernasconi; Ederson, Gaetano, Samardzic; Zalewski, Scamacca, Raspadori. Head Coach: Sarri.

HAPOEL TEL AVIV (4-2-3-1): Tzur; Coco, Mayembo, Chico, Leidner; Kraev, Falcao; Turiel, Alkoukin, Altman; Boateng. Coach: Barda.