While last week was a bit disappointing after Atlanta United’s loss to newcomers Charlotte FC, it cemented one very important fact: an enthusiastic Atlanta United fanbase. Several heated encounters were scattered all over the goal, with people calling for a #guzanout, people stating that Mando Moreno had no place in the team, others calling for a complete rebuild, and then doing everything in between. In the meantime, others are looking at the positives. For example, Atlanta was the better team overall in the match, all while being the unfortunate recipient of Olympique. Or Atalanta created a lot of chances against a team led by a vastly superior goalkeeper and an intelligent coach.
Regardless of the discussion, let’s take a minute and enjoy the fact that we as fans, journalists, models, supporters and everyone across the club already have the opportunity to argue about these topics. Can we expect and hope for the best? certainly. Can we continue to hold out hope that 2018 dominance will return? Certainly, and arguably the only thing holding that back is the lack of a full-fledged Atlanta talent capable of stepping onto the field together. Regardless of the results, Five Stripes hold up in a favorable position with plenty of season left to play.
With all that being said, let’s delve into the highlights from last week in the world of Atlanta United.
Let’s get this out of the way. Bad loss, whatever, I understand, especially when the little brother who finally beat you at Super Smash Bros. When you have a handicap on yourself, and then all you hear is their mouths for the next week about how “I’m BeAt yoU!”
The match started a bit weak on the Atlanta side, but it wasn’t until a batch of hits was cut that the five stripes ended up giving up three straight corners. And of course, as the football gods revealed, Atlanta United and set-pieces aren’t working right now. Charlotte’s swinging floating angle drifted into the box, then over the headers of the line, then over Gozan’s head, and then somewhere in the back of the net. Olympico.
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Bob Donnan USA Today Sports
Something like this definitely leaves a bad taste in the collective mouth, and it’s easy to start blaming Brad Guzan. This game will be picked for weeks, but it’s worth noting that Charlotte had an absolute game plan on set pieces. They deliberately put a player in front of Brad to grab his attention and pull him forward, and no one in Atlanta took the time to help push the Charlotte forward out of the way. It’s a great plan, but no one would have imagined that it would turn out to be Olympico. It’s a goal, it’s a lucky goal. But it put Charlotte ahead 1-0, where they will stay until the end of the game.
But Atlanta did not fall without a fight. They created chances throughout the rest of the match, with some great moments by Thiago Almada, Marcelino Moreno, and Andrew Guttmann. Also, the introduction of Ronaldo Cisneros was quite promising, as he provides a type of attacker that can relate well to the playing styles of Moreno, Almada and Araujo. The Five Stripes beat the door but couldn’t bring it down and opened the scoring. Happening, it’s not the end of the world nor the end of the season. It must be remembered that Gonzalo Pineda is not working anywhere close to his Plan A at the moment. They’ve pulled off some results in the past few games, and while everyone wants to see a dominant 3-0 performance, that’s not always the way you play this game.
Speaking of score screeching, Caleb Wiley was literally centimeters away from scoring his second goal of the season late in the game from an airborne volley that just scraped the far post. In other words, there are promising signs, it is not just doom and gloom.
Next time we’ll stop the handicap.
The word injury has been spewing everywhere lately in the world of Atlanta United. Apparently Orlando or some other decadent person put some voodoo in someone’s bag, but thankfully not everything was shaded in the dark clouds. The team released some information on Tuesday on 92.9 the game about Joseph, Rossetto, Hyndman and Araujo, all of which were fairly promising.
By the end of May seems fast, but it’s worth noting that Joseph’s surgery was minimally invasive. One can only hope that this will be the final touch on the ‘El Rey’ knee saga, and come back feeling well beyond 100%. Either way, that’s good news for a team with Atlanta aspirations.
In addition, Darren Ailes also reported at 92.9 that Luis Araujo has started training with the team again, that Matthews Rossetto can be back much faster than many feared, and that Emerson Hyndmann could appear very soon.
Elise says Mateus Rossetto could return to integrate with the first team later this week, and Emerson Hyndmann should return sooner than he is scheduled to in Round 20.
– Mike Conti (@MikeConti929) April 12 2022
For a team struggling with injuries, this news was a pleasant surprise. It wouldn’t be surprising to see any of the last three get limited minutes against FC Cincinnati, or even against Chattanooga FCV. US Open Cup next week.
Finally, it should be noted that Ozzie Alonso has had an ACL surgery and is about to begin his rehabilitation. Here’s a quick and hassle-free recovery process.
bluffs. absurdity. What is this bullshit. Many other choice words can be used to describe what happened in the last few minutes of Atlanta United’s 2 home game against Detroit City. Firstly, it should be noted that the duo did not have the best match, and what happened in the last few minutes did not affect the result at all. Detroit City showed their quality and opened the scoring in the 23rd minute. However, the home team did not have a rough time; They showed flashes of quality but couldn’t put anything together and conceded 3 goals before the first half.
The second half saw Jonantan Filal II come within inches of scoring the camel.
Then things went horribly wrong. In a promising attack, Darwin Matthews had a clear foul in the penalty area but no foul was awarded and no penalty was awarded. Detroit immediately hit back in the other direction and found a fourth goal to make matters worse. Matthews was visibly frustrated and in the next match, apparently said something that offended referee Jordan Gray the entirety of this universe, because he was immediately given a red card and sent off for ‘opposition’. What was said is clearly unknown, but Darwin seems to have said it in passing; There was no arguing in the referee’s face or consistent shouting over and over. Regardless, he was fired and things became endlessly inconsistent.
Umm. The referee missed a clear penalty kick when Darwin Matthews fouled in the penalty area. The ball retracts the other way, Detroit scores a fourth, and when they reset, referee Matthews gives a red card. Wonderful. # i read #UniteAndConquer
– Tyler Pilgrim (@ATLPilgrim) April 10 2022
A few moments before the end of the game, Nigel Prince made a rough tackle on a Detroit City player and soon appeared yellow. But this one is important: Another Detroit City player turned around, hit the ground and started screaming at Jordan Gray. However, Matthews was sent off less than ten minutes ago for mumbling something to the referee before kick-off? Next, the reference turns around and changes yellow to red, sending Nigel Prince.
But wait there is more.
The second red obviously frustrated the seat, and some sneaks started back and forth on the sidelines. Jack Collison intervened, apparently (by his demeanor and body language) in an attempt to calm down Everyone Down, not only Atlanta United 2 players. Then he receives a yellow. The last 20 minutes of the match were a huge disaster. It should certainly be noted that the referees obviously have to get full match experience, and everyone starts somewhere. But this got out of hand in a ruthless way, to the point where it seemed like both teams were completely satisfied just walking off the field at the 90-minute mark. At 90+2 they did just that, unfortunately Atlanta United 2 is now down with two options as they prepare for Indy Eleven on Saturday. On top of that, the madness overshadowed some significant events for a few of the 2 players, as newcomer Nelson Orji made his debut, and Cristiano Broletti and Eminic Nogo also rose to their new professional abilities.
The adidas Generation Cup is an under-15 and under-17 tournament that offers youth academies through MLS and a great remote experience in a tournament environment. The current iteration is now taking place in Dallas, bringing in talent from Manchester United, Celtic, River Plate, Tigress, and plenty of other juggernauts.
Atlanta United is doing really well. The U-15 team showed great promise against some tough opponents in the group stage, as the quartet of the likes of Porto, Philadelphia Union and Portland Timbers formed, dominating the group with two wins and a draw. Then they worked on Riados 2-0 in the round of 16. As of this writing, the U-15s have defeated the Tigres in a fantastic match 3-1 to advance to the semi-finals, so don’t forget to keep an eye. Going on to face Valencia at 8pm EST. Who knows who might be the next George Campbell or Caleb Wiley?
By the way, take a moment and rejoice at this wonderful celebration from the winner of the game here:
The U-17s started well in the group stage, finishing second in the quartet against the likes of Celtic, New England Revolution and FC Cincinnati, but were unfortunately knocked out in the last 16 by Inter Miami. There was plenty of talent to see, and they still had three matches left to build more experience against the other arrivals.
If you’re interested in checking out any of these matches, check out Generation adidas page hereMost of the matches are played on Twitch or Youtube.
When Atlanta United debuted, Archie Eversoll quickly became the Atlanta rapper no one knew Atlanta United needed. But now his ‘We’re Ready’ anthem has become a distinctive part of the experience at the Five Stripes matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and no doubt contributes to the intimidating atmosphere that helps the city achieve weekly and weekly results. That’s why his recent passing was closer to home for the fans, because he was widely known as a man of the people and a man who came out to cheer for Atlanta United as a real fan, not a celebrity. Tragically, Archie was murdered by his brother in DeKalb County, but it is clear that his legacy will live on powerfully not only among Atlanta supporters but Atlanta in general. Here we hope ‘we’re ready’ is blown completely for too long in every home game.
The Five Stripes are back in action tomorrow against FC Cincinnati as they look to develop a positive home run. Shall we see Hyndman return to the squad? Will Araujo get a chance to run all over Sensei again in a Benz? Can Cisneros, Almada, and/or Moreno make the most of a frayed defense line that has given up 14 goals this season? If you get a few moments, go Check my chat With the great folks at Cincinnati Soccer Talk as we discuss the upcoming game, Atlanta’s injury status, and what Gonzalo Pineda has brought to the team.
