A pair of struggling sides in MLS will battle at Mercedes-Benz Stadium when Atlanta United host the New England Revolution on Saturday.
The Five Stripes came back to draw Nashville SC 2-2 away from home in their last fixture, while the Revs conceded three goals in less than 25 minutes to lose to Toronto FC 3-2.
Match preview
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What was supposed to be a bounce-back campaign for Atlanta has yet to materialize after a dozen games in 2021, with the team currently on a seven-game winless run, their longest stretch without a victory in club history.
Last season the excuse was injuries, and while they have had their share of that again this season, this once high-scoring team, who led all MLS sides in goals in the 2018 regular season (70), have not been able to find the mark consistently in 2021, going goalless in three of their last four games.
This may be the darkest period in the history of the club, who are playing in their fifth MLS campaign, but there were some good signs that manager Gabriel Heinze can take away from his side's performance in their last match against Nashville.
Despite having a lot less possession than they are used to (51%), they were able to score from their only two shots on target even though they were reduced to 10 men in the second half, earning a point against a team in Nashville who before that game had never surrendered a second-half lead.
As they aim to earn their first victory since May 15, perhaps they should adopt the motto less is more moving forward.
Last Thursday, they had the lowest amount of possession they have ever had in a game this season, and it was only the fourth time all year where the Five Stripes had less than 60% of the ball, and yet they were as clinical in front of goal as we have seen in quite some time, finding the back of the net twice despite having only six total shot attempts.
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After weeks of smooth sailing, winning five in a row and in a comfortable position in the Eastern Conference, the New England Revolution have hit a wall, going winless in their last three games.
What seems to be the most baffling thing about their current slide is the opponents that they have lost to, falling 2-1 to FC Dallas, who are 12th in the Western Conference, and dropping a 3-2 decision to Toronto FC, who are dead last in MLS.
Heading into their match this weekend, Bruce Arena and his side have had 10 days to try to fix what has gone wrong over their past three fixtures.
The three-time MLS Coach of the Year has criticized his team for giving away points, having squandered four from winning positions this season, but they have also struggled as mentioned against some of the teams at the bottom of the standings, losing two of their three games this year versus non-playoff teams.
The silver lining amid all the points dropped is that this team are still on top of the Eastern Conference standings, with a three-point cushion over Orlando City SC, who will have a game in hand.
Championship teams have to show that they can handle significant challenges, and the Revs will have some big ones upcoming, playing six games in 23 days, starting in Atlanta on Saturday.
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Team News
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Atlanta midfielder Emerson Hyndman continues to struggle with a cruciate ligament rupture, while midfielder Mo Adams suffered a left quadricep injury against Nashville and will miss the next two-to-three months, while defender Alex DeJohn sustained a fractured left elbow and will be evaluated on a week-to-week basis.
The Five Stripes are missing three players on international duty at the Gold Cup, including starting goalkeeper Brad Guzan, plus defenders George Bello and Miles Robinson, all representing the United States.
Midfielder Jake Mulraney is eligible to play this weekend despite his red card in their match against Nashville after his suspension was rescinded by an Independent Review Panel, while central midfielder Amar Sejdic could play for the Five Stripes after being acquired in a trade with CF Montreal last week.
Luis Caicedo is not expected to play because of a leg injury, while Teal Bunbury made only his third start of the season for New England in their previous game.
The Revs will be without striker Tajon Buchanan, who is with Canada for the Gold Cup, while goalkeeper Matt Turner picked up a clean sheet for the United States in his first match at that competition.
Gustavo Bou has a goal in each of his last five matches, leading the team with six so far, just one ahead of Adam Buksa, who scored his first goal in his last five games in a losing effort against TFC.
Atlanta United possible starting lineup:
Kann; Hernandez, Walkes, Ambrose, Lennon; Sosa; Lopez, Wolff; Conway, Chol, Torres
New England Revolution possible starting lineup:
Knighton; Bye, Farrell, Kessler, Bell; Boateng, Gil, Polster, Maciel; Buksa, Bou
We say: Atlanta United 2-1 New England Revolution
Atlanta showed a lot of resilience in their last match and should be aided with over 40,000 screaming fans to cheer them on against a team that are also struggling at the moment.
New England have lost in all four of their visits to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, plus they are missing their starting keeper and a lot of speed out wide in Buchanan, while they are also struggling defensively, allowing 10 goals in their last five games.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Atlanta United win with a probability of 40.6%. A win for New England Revolution had a probability of 33.98% and a draw had a probability of 25.4%.
The most likely scoreline for an Atlanta United win was 1-0 with a probability of 9.21%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.73%) and 2-0 (6.68%). The likeliest New England Revolution win was 0-1 (8.29%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.02%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with an 8.3% likelihood.
