The “healthy frustration” Atlanta United players are feeling about their franchise-worst start bubbled up Tuesday with Bartosz Slisz and Tristan Muyumba twice locking their arms and going face-to-face during a session. The two hugged when the session was over.
“You need it, even in the training, because I think it’s gonna help the team,” Slisz said, describing it as “healthy frustration.”
“We are too nice,” he said. “We have to be more aggressive and show the opponents that they’re going to come to our stadium, our home, and they will not win on this day.”
Atlanta United has taken nine points from its eight matches, including six at home. It’s the fewest points the team has taken though eight matches in its nine seasons. Its most recent match was a 1-0 loss to New England.
“This is annoying because we had a lot of chances in the game,” Slisz said. “We can’t score the goal, and at the end, we are the losers.”
The challenge is going to increase because four of the team’s next five matches are on the road, starting Saturday at Philadelphia. Atlanta United is 0-1-1 away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium this season. Each team in the next five matches would make the playoffs if it’s nine teams again this season.
“Focus about future is the most important,” Slisz said. “The future is the most important, today’s training session, and I think it’s really competitive. Everyone wants to win. In the training everyone wants to win, and we have to show it in the game. We have to be more aggressive. We have to put more pressure on them. They’re gonna make mistakes.”
Slisz said the start to this season — which was supposed to have so much promise following the $22 million acquisition of Emmanuel Latte Lath, the $10 million acquisition of Miguel Almiron, and the trade for Mateusz Klich — reminds him of the start to last season. The team had 11 points and a goal-difference of plus-4 through eight matches under Gonzalo Pineda. The season finished on a positive note, with interim manager Rob Valentino leading the team past Montreal and Miami in the playoffs.
This season, Atlanta United has a goal difference of minus-2 under new manager Ronny Deila and has been shut out three times.
“(Like last season) we have very good quality in the team,” Slisz said. “So I hope we will come back and the results will come and we have to believe it.”
By comparison, the most points the team has had through eight matches was 19 in 2018 under manager Gerardo Martino, with a goal-difference of plus-12. Six times, the team has earned 10 or 11 points through eight matches.
The previous worst start was 10 points through 2020 when it had a goal-difference of minus-1. That was the COVID-shortened year that started with Josef Martinez suffering a knee injury in the first match. The team still won its first two matches before everything shut down for COVID-19. It restarted a few weeks later with the team suffering three shutout losses in the MLS is Back tournament in Orlando, Florida. Manager Frank de Boer then was fired and Stephen Glass was promoted to interim. The team failed to make the playoffs for the first time. It finished averaging 0.96 points per game with a goal-difference of minus-7 in a 23-match season.
Atlanta United this season is averaging 1.13 points and has a goal-difference of minus-2. It’s on pace to finish with 38 points and a goal-difference of minus-8.
“It’s not easy because if you lose, and you don’t feel frustrated I think something is wrong with you,” Slisz said. “I want to win every game. And as I said, it’s similar to last year. Right now, nobody believes it but the team, we believe in it, but we have to make this step forward, and that’s it. Don’t think about the past. Just think about the future.”
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Atlanta United’s 2025 schedule
Feb. 22 Atlanta United 3, Montreal 2
March 1 Charlotte 2, Atlanta United 0
March 8 Atlanta United 0, New York Red Bulls 0
March 16 Miami 2, Atlanta United 1
March 22 Atlanta United 2, Cincinnati 2
March 29 Atlanta United 4, NYCFC 3
April 5 Atlanta United 1, Dallas 1
April 12 New England 1, Atlanta United 0
April 19 at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m., Apple
April 26 at Orlando, 7 p.m., Apple, Fox
May 3 vs. Nashville, 2:30 p.m., Apple, Fox
May 10 at Chicago, 2:30 p.m., Apple
May 14 at Austin, 8:30 p.m., Apple
May 17 vs. Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m., Apple
May 25 vs. Cincinnati, 7 p.m., Apple
May 28 vs. Orlando, 7:30 p.m., Apple
May 31 at Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m., Apple
June 12 at NYCFC, 7:30 p.m., Apple
June 25 at Columbus, 7:30 p.m., Apple
June 28 at Miami, 7:30 p.m., Apple
July 5 at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m., Apple
July 12 at Toronto, 7:30 p.m., Apple
July 16 vs. Chicago, 7:30 p.m., Apple, FS1
July 19 vs. Charlotte, 7:30 p.m., Apple
July 26 vs. Seattle, 7:30 p.m., Apple
July 30 vs. Necaxa, Leagues Cup
Aug. 2. vs. Pumas in Orlando, Leagues Cup
Aug. 6 vs. Atlas, Leagues Cup
Aug. 9 at Montreal, 7:30 p.m., Apple
Aug. 16 at Colorado, 9:30 p.m., Apple
Aug. 24 vs. Toronto, 5 p.m., Apple
Aug. 30 at Nashville, 8:30 p.m. Apple
Sept. 13 vs. Columbus, 7:30 p.m., Apple
Sept. 20 vs. San Diego, 4:30 p.m., Apple
Sept. 27 at New England, 7:30 p.m., Apple
Oct. 5 at LAFC, 10:30 p.m., Apple
Oct. 18 vs. D.C. United, 6 p.m., Apple
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