European soccer’s first piece of UEFA silverware is up for grabs in Poland on Wednesday when Real Madrid and Atalanta BC meet in Warsaw for the Super Cup. The Spanish giants are defending Champions League titleholders thanks to the 15th competition win while the Italian outfit triumphed in the Europa League for their first major continental success.
Borussia Dortmund were put to the sword by Real at Wembley by Carlo Ancelotti’s men in efficient style to qualify for this season’s curtain raiser. Los Blancos added La Liga to their UCL title and come into this new campaign with Kylian Mbappe and Endrick part of the squad although Toni Kroos and Nacho Fernandez have moved on. The ex-Paris Saint-Germain man could be in line to debut having watched preseason so far for the most part and a win here would mean a record sixth Super Cup.
Bayer Leverkusen fell against Atalanta in the Europa League final which put La Dea into this encounter and Gian Piero Gasperini’s side finally have the European recognition that their recent development has arguably deserved. That UEL success was joined by a fourth-place finish in Serie A and a Coppa Italia runners-up berth.
Here are our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
- Date: Wednesday, Aug. 14 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: National Stadium – Warsaw, Poland
- Watch: CBS Sports Golazo Network and Paramount+
- Odds: Real -200; Draw +350; Atalanta +480
New faces
Real could hand a debut to Kylian Mbappe who is the major new signing despite the addition of Endrick at substantial cost but there will be no Toni Kroos after his retirement. Atalanta have also been busy with Charles De Ketelaere, Mateo Retegui, Ben Godfrey, Nicolo Zaniolo and Ibrahim Sulemana arriving with Hans Hateboer, Pierluigi Gollini, Duvan Zapata and Aleksei Miranchuk moving on.
Team news
Real: David Alaba remains out as he continues to work his way back from an ACL injury while Dani Carvajal and Jude Bellingham are also back and could feature in the starting XI alongside Euro 2024 star Arda Guler. Mbappe, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior should all start up top despite speculation already starting that the Frenchman’s arrival could be problematic for at least one of the two Brazilians moving forward.
Possible Real XI: Courtois; Carvajal, Rudiger, Militao, Mendy; Valverde, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius Junior.
Atalanta: Retegui could debut after Gianluca Scamacca’s ACL injury while Giorgio Scalvini remains out with a similar issue. Ederson is still an Atalanta player while Juventus and Liverpool target Teun Koopmeiners is unlikely to be involved after requesting a transfer away.
Possible Atalanta XI: Musso; Djimsiti, Hien, Kolasinac; Zappacosta, Pasalic, Ederson, Ruggeri; Lookman, De Ketelaere; Retegui.
Prediction
Although this could have been a tricky game later in the year, Real should be able to see off Atalanta after a tricky preseason results-wise. Los Blancos look stronger on paper and that should manifest itself in a two-goal winning margin. Pick: Real 2, Atalanta 0.
