The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Road gets tough for United
Not time to panic yet but troubling trends beginning to emerge.
Yes, Atlanta United has dropped six of a possible nine points through its first three home games, including Sunday’s 3-1 loss to D.C. United at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Yes, Atlanta United gave up a lead for the fourth game this season.
Yes, Atlanta United must now go on the road for consecutive games against hot teams: NYCFC and Portland. No, it’s not time to panic. “We are a new team,” fullback Tyrone Mears said. “When you have a new team, the expectation is usually low. But I think the start we’ve had, the players brought to the club, the coach we have, the expectation levels have been raised a lot. I think we still have to take into account we
are a new team. We’ve been together for four months.
“Of course, we have the quality that we feel we can fight and finish in a playoff spot.”
The problems that thwarted Atlanta United’s chances against D.C. United aren’t new to the team, even if it is has played just eight games (3-3-2). They are the same problems demonstrated over the season’s first two months. The team failed to capitalize on several scoring chances, including two by Kenwyne Jones and two by Hector Villalba, who had one promising shot deflected off D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid’s foot.
The team has created 70 chances this season, fifthmost in MLS, including a season-high 21 against D.C. United. That total was almost twice as many as its next highest total, 12 against Chicago, which played with 10 men for the game’s final 78 minutes. Atlanta United has scored 18 goals, second-most in MLS.
“The good thing is we are creating chances and that’s important for us,” Atlanta United manager Gerardo Martino said. “What we have to do is when we are ahead in the game, we can’t give the other team an opportunity to come back in the game. We have to make sure we don’t give the other team those chances to score.”
Once Atlanta United got a deserved 1-0 lead, it couldn’t sustain the energy it displayed in dominating the game’s first 20 minutes. Captain Michael Parkhurst said the team started with the right mentality and “went downhill pretty quick.”
Not being able to sustain a level of play has been the case throughout the season, even in games it has won: short periods of brilliance followed by some long periods of breath-holding.
Real Salt Lake was able to claw back into an April 22 game and cut Atlanta United’s lead to 2-1 before the Five Stripes pulled away for a 3-1 win. Atlanta United allowed two goals in its first game to lose to New York Red Bulls 2-1 on March 5. It gave up two goals in the second half against Montreal in a 2-1 loss on April 15, when the team was forced to play with just 10 men in the second half.
Some of that trend can be attributed to the team’s inexperience of playing together. Some can be attributed to some players’ lack of experience in MLS. Some on Sunday can be attributed to the team missing leading scorer Josef Martinez and midfielder Jeff Larentowicz. Parkhurst even mentioned the heat and a dry field as factors on Sunday.
“The mood of the team changed because of our errors,” Martino said. “That’s what ultimately decided the game. We were missing that conviction to deal with adversity (Sunday).”
How does the team bounce back with upcoming road games against NYCFC, winners of two of its last three, and Portland, which has picked up seven points in its past four games?
Mears said the team will work harder during training. For the next game, Atlanta United likely won’t have Martinez or Jacob Peterson (injury). It could also be without Yamil Asad, who may be suspended by the MLS disciplinary committee. Asad appeared to raise an elbow and strike the jaw of a D.C. United player. Leandro Gonzalez Pirez also raised an elbow at a D.C. United player. A foul was called on Asad, but not on Pirez.
The good news: The team has earned eight points from five road games this season, compared to just three from three home games. It has experience to draw from.
“We’ve shown we can get results on the road,” Parkhurst said. “We have to. We missed this opportunity (Sunday). It’s our only home game in a seven-game span and we took nothing from it. We have to pick up points on the road.”