Bayer Leverkusen and Atalanta meet in Wednesday's Europa League final with the game meaning a great deal to both clubs for different reasons.
The stakes are high in Wednesday's Europa League final at Dublin's Aviva Stadium - even higher than usual.
Atalanta boss Gian Piero Gasperini, whose side are without captain Marten de Roon through injury, said: "I think we are in the best possible condition in a psychological and physical sense. They had never won a German title in their 119-year history until this year - and then they did it without losing a single game. That is something no team had ever done in the Bundesliga.
It is not just the quality of the football and the team, with free-scoring wing-backs, it is the remarkable never-say-die spirit. Even if they beat Atalanta, there is one more obstacle after this - a German Cup final against second-tier Kaiserslautern on Saturday.Atalanta are another team, like Bayer Leverkusen, with very little silverware and a transformative manager - albeit over a longer period of time.
This is their first European final, with Gasperini hoping to take the final step and leading them to glory.
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