Days after stunning Inter Miami, Atlanta United host Charlotte FC at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday on their return to MLS action.
Wednesday's win over Lionel Messi and co. ended a two-month sequence without a league triumph, and they seek consecutive victories for the first time since March.
Match preview
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Despite Messi's involvement, Atlanta secured an unexpected 3-1 win over the 2022 World Cup winner in Miami last time out, ending a two-month run without maximum points in Major League Soccer.
Gonzalo Pineda's troops last won a game against Chicago Fire at the backend of March and had been unsuccessful in nine league games.
Five of those nine fixtures were losses for the Five Stripes, who now hope to record back-to-back victories in the competition since defeating New England Revolution (4-1) and Orlando City (2-0) just over two months back.
That is undoubtedly far from guaranteed for Pineda's men due to a five-match winless MLS run in front of their fans, including four losses on the trot on home turf.
The downturn in front of their supporters follows a three-game winning sequence to start the new season — four if last season's results are considered — and an eight-match undefeated home streak stretching to the previous season. This has possibly surprised observers who had not seen Atlanta lose at home since August 2023 until the recent dip.
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Charlotte aim to prevent the Five Stripes from building on that unexpected result in Miami, keen to thwart their Eastern Conference rivals' potential ascent into the top nine places.
However, the visitors are in indifferent form after failing to win in their last three MLS fixtures. More troubling for Dean Smith's men has been the shortage of goals in that period, having fired blanks in goalless encounters against LA Galaxy and Philadelphia Union before the recent 3-1 loss to New York Red Bulls.
The goalscoring dip was obvious in the 1-0 wins over Nashville and Chicago Fire that preceded the ongoing run, meaning Smith's men have not scored more than a goal since beating Portland Timbers 2-0 at the start of May.
Further troubling for the travelling fans is the Crown's wretched road return since the beginning of March — five losses in six MLS away games — following a four-game undefeated sequence to start 2024 — two wins and as many draws.
It remains to be seen if that bad road run continues against a side still buoyed by recently defeating the league-leading side, but Smith will hope his team turn the tide this weekend.
Team News
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Saba Lobjanidze (two goals) was the Atlanta hero against Inter Miami in midweek, and the forward should start for Pineda's men this weekend.
Bartosz Slisz has joined the Poland squad for Euro 2024, ruling out the midfield man against Charlotte. Also absent is Tyler Wolff (knee), while Noah Cobb (ankle) is touch-and-go for the clash.
Patrick Agyemang is the away side's leading scorer with three goals, but the 23-year-old Ghanaian has not found the back of the net in four MLS games since notching the game-clinching effort against Nashville.
Jere Uronen and Junior Urso are doubtful for this weekend due to thigh issues, while Joao Pedro's participation is uncertain after suffering a knock that forced him off in the closing minutes at the Red Bulls.
Atlanta United possible starting lineup:
Guzan; Gregersen, Williams, Abram; Lennon, McCarty, Muyumba, Wiley; Lobjanidze, Thiare, Almada
Charlotte FC possible starting lineup:
Kahlina; Lindsey, Malanda, Privett, Byrne; Petkovic, Westwood, Diani; Abada, Agyemang, Vargas
We say: Atlanta United 1-1 Charlotte FC
Despite defeating Inter Miami in midweek, Sunday's clash is uncertain due to Atlanta's disappointing home record and Charlotte's awful road form. Thus, erring on the side of caution seems the best bet with a draw extending the away side's winless sequence to four.
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