ATLANTA UNITED VS. LAFC

TODAY’S MATCHUP

LAFC (6-4-3) vs. Atlanta United (3-6-4) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Time/TV: 7:30 p.m., AppleTV

■ LAFC manager: Steve Cherundolo

■ LAFC away record: 1-4-1

■ Atlanta United home record:

3-3-1

■ LAFC goals for/against: 24/19

■ LAFC expected goals for/ against: 26.6/14.8

■ Atlanta United goals for/ against: 17/16

■ Atlanta United expected goals for/against: 18.6/17.9

■ Atlanta United all-time vs LAFC: 2-1-1, 2-0-0 home

LAFC KEY PLAYERS

■ Denis Bouanga: Eight goals, five assists

■ Mateusz Bogusz: Four goals, two assists

■ Timothy Tillman: Four goals, two assists ATLANTA UNITED KEY PLAYERS

■ Saba Lobjanidze: Two goals, three assists

■ Brooks Lennon: Four assists

INJURY REPORTS (AS OF THURSDAY)

Atlanta United

■ Out: Giorgos Giakoumakis (hamstring), Noah Cobb (ankle) and Tyler Wolff (knee)

■ Questionable: Thiago Almada (calf) and Derrick Williams (calf) LAFC

■ None reported

WHAT WAS SAID?

“I think we’ve worked through a very, very tough period of time. And I feel like the last couple results and performances have been encouraging in the sense of the fight of the team. The team is willing to get back into the season. We need to capitalize on this and especially now that hopefully some of the players are back ... and so with the full roster, I think we’ve showed already that we’re a good team. So hopefully that can continue and improvements can continue the next few matches.” — United manager Gonzalo Pineda

“I’ve definitely been happy with the way that as a team we’ve been really able to hone in and try to tighten things up defensively, at the back. Obviously, against Nashville, just conceding a penalty, and then keeping a clean sheet against Charleston. They might seem like not that big of a deal, but they’re baby steps and steps in the right direction on the defensive side of the ball. On the attacking side, it’s important that we continue to be sharp. We’re just lacking a little bit of cutting edge, a little bit of sharpness, a little bit of confidence in the final third because I think this team is capable of scoring goals. And we’ve proven that in the past.” — United midfielder Dax McCarty

ATLANTA UNITED’S PREDICTED 11

■ Goalkeeper Brad Guzan

■ Centerback Luis Abram

■ Centerback Stian Gregersen

■ Right fullback Brooks Lennon

■ Left fullback Caleb Wiley

■ Midfielder Bartosz Slisz

■ Midfielder Tristan Muyumba

■ Midfielder Dax McCarty

■ Winger Xande Silva

■ Winger Saba Lobjanidze

■ Striker Jamal Thiare