Preview: Atalanta BC vs Parma - prediction, team news, lineups

Following two disappointing results, Atalanta BC will seek a return to winning ways when they host Serie A strugglers Parma on Sunday.

After failing to beat lowly Pisa, La Dea lost a midweek Champions League contest; meanwhile, their visitors have inched away from danger by going three games without defeat.

Match preview

Hitting their hopes of automatically reaching the last 16, Atalanta threw away a lead in Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Athletic Bilbao, falling apart after Gianluca Scamacca's first-half header had been levelled against the run of play.

Slipping up on home turf, La Dea conceded three goals within 16 second-half minutes, before Nikola Krstovic belatedly pulled one back in the closing stages.

As a result, Raffaele Palladino’s side have dropped out of the top eight and down to 13th, meaning they may need to beat Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise in next week’s finale - otherwise, a two-legged playoff tie will await.

First, though, Atalanta’s attention must return to Serie A, where they sit seventh after last week’s 1-1 draw with Pisa, having failed to defend another late goal by Krstovic.

Trailing five points behind Italy’s top six, the Bergamaschi may have just lost for the first time this year, but progress under Palladino has been apparent.

La Dea had previously started 2026 with three consecutive wins, while they have conceded just twice across their last six top-flight fixtures.

Before Palladino’s arrival, Atalanta played out a 1-1 draw with Parma in their first away game of the season, meaning they have picked up just a point from the past two meetings.

Thanks to late strikes in both of those matches, Parma boast a good recent record against this week’s hosts, while results this year also suggest they could upset La Dea.

After making a slow start to life under rookie coach Carlos Cuesta, the Emilian club are now edging away from the drop zone - albeit they are far from out of danger.

A commendable tally of 12 points from eight games has helped Cuesta's side move up the Serie A standings, even if goals remain hard to come by.

The division’s second-lowest scorers have drawn both of their last two matches 0-0, holding reigning champions Napoli to a goalless stalemate before playing out another draw with Genoa.

Ahead of a tough February schedule featuring encounters with Juventus, AC Milan and regional rivals Bologna, the Crociati must wrap up this month with a tricky trip to Bergamo.

There, they will aim to extend a good run of results on the road, having lost just three of 10 away fixtures so far; indeed, their last league loss outside of Parma dates back to October.

Atalanta BC Serie A form:

W L W W W D

Atalanta BC form (all competitions):

L W W W D L

Parma Serie A form:

W D L W D D

Team News

As Berat Djimsiti was passed fit to start in Atalanta’s midweek defeat, only Raoul Bellanova may be missing on Sunday, depending on his recovery from a hamstring injury.

Setting up La Dea’s second goal, Ademola Lookman made his first substitute appearance since claiming a bronze medal at AFCON, and the Nigeria star may now be ready to start.

Palladino has plenty of attacking options to choose from; however, Lookman must compete with Nicola Zalewski, new boy Giacomo Raspadori and Charles De Ketelaere to support either Scamacca or Krstovic up front.

Meanwhile, Parma are still missing injured goalkeepers Vicente Guaita and Zion Suzuki, plus Pontus Almqvist, Abdoulaye Ndiaye and long-term absentee Matija Frigan.

Edoardo Corvi should deputise between the posts after producing several saves to defy Genoa last time out.

At the other end, top scorer Mateo Pellegrino will try to end his team’s drought: with six strikes so far, the Argentine striker has been responsible for almost half of Parma’s league goals.

Atalanta BC possible starting lineup:

Carnesecchi; Scalvini, Hien, Ahanor; Zappacosta, De Roon, Ederson, Bernasconi; De Ketelaere, Lookman; Scamacca

Parma possible starting lineup:

Corvi; Delprato, Circati, Valenti, Valeri; Bernabe, Keita, Sorensen; Oristanio, Ondrejka; Pellegrino