Atlanta United will be without several players when it faces Minnesota United on Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium.
Manager Gerardo Martino on Thursday said that midfielders Ezequiel Barco and Andrew Carleton, and defender Franco Escobar won’t be available because they are recovering from injuries or illness.
Barco, 18, sustained a quadriceps injury while training for the season-opening game four weeks ago. He has yet to play in a game, but he has resumed running. Martino didn’t want to give a timetable for Barco’s return. Barco is the most expensive transfer in MLS history after Atlanta United reportedly paid Independiente $15 million for his rights.
Escobar, 23, sustained a concussion in the second half of the 4-1 win against Vancouver two weeks ago. He has yet to resume training. He started the season’s first three games. Martino has several players he could use in place of Escobar, including Chris McCann, Sal Zizzo and Jeff Larentowicz.
Carleton, 17, contracted strep throat while training with the U.S. U-20 national team.
Additionally, Martino said that midfielder Oliver Shannon and defender Miles Robinson will be with Atlanta United 2 for Saturday’s USL game at Charlotte. Both started and played in last week’s 3-1 win against New York Red Bulls II at Coolray Field.
Darlington Nagbe and Miguel Almiron will be available. Both played in Tuesday’s friendly between the U.S. and Paraguay in Cary, N.C. They resumed training with Atlanta United on Thursday.
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