Atlanta United wants Wednesday’s 3-1 win against Miami to be its springboard for the rest of the season, starting Sunday against Charlotte at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
But it must remember that the only reason the victory could become important is because the team had sunk so low. Manager Gonzalo Pineda said again Friday that the team still has a long way to go because of the hole it dug itself into with its nine-match winless streak. The Five Stripes are in 12th place (out of 15) in the MLS standings, three points from the ninth and final playoff spot and 10 points from fourth, which comes with home-field advantage in the playoffs.
“I hope I can find the right words, the right connection with them individually, collectively so we can make that big, big victory, turning point in the season and we can in three, four months, we can come back to remember Miami, ‘that was important, that’s where we came back to who we are,’ I hope that happens,” Pineda said. “But in order to do that, we have to be focused in the present, we have to be focused on today, their recovery. Tomorrow we will focus on the preparation for the game.”
Midfielder Tristan Muyumba said he doesn’t know why everything clicked for Atlanta United against Miami. He said the formation change to a 3-4-3 gave him and Thiago Almada more freedom, but that wasn’t the only reason for the improvement. He said the teamwork was more important. Pineda cited the humility of players to work when he spoke during the post-match press conference. The final score could have been much worse for the hosts had Atlanta United’s finishing been better.
Muyumba said he is confident the team can continue to play with the aggressive play on offense and discipline on defense that it used Wednesday.
“It’s not just because we won this game (that) we became the best team of the league, no,” he said. “It’s just the process and keep the good things from the last game and go in the direction.”
A problem for Atlanta United in trying to keep this going is Charlotte isn’t Miami. Charlotte isn’t likely going to try to play a lot of soccer Sunday. It likely will play in a low block and be happy for Atlanta United to have the ball. Atlanta United had less than 45% of possession against Miami, but used its skill in transition to produce 24 shots.
“Hopefully, that Miami game was a one-off,” Charlotte manager Dean Smith said.
Before it was beaten by the Red Bulls 3-1 on Wednesday, Charlotte had five consecutive shutouts. It has seven this season.
Trying to unlock a determined defense is something Atlanta United hasn’t been able to consistently do this season. That in part is why the team was mired in its long winless streak before Miami.
“We believe in ourselves, and we trust we can win this game, especially at home, because it’s been a long time without a win,” Muyumba said. “So for us, it’s really, really important to win this game because of course, we did a good game Wednesday, but the best way to be consistent is to win the next game.”
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Atlanta United’s 2024 schedule
Feb. 24 Columbus 1, Atlanta United 0
March 9 Atlanta United 4, New England 1
March 17 Atlanta United 2, Orlando 0
March 23 Toronto 2, Atlanta United 0
March 31 Atlanta United 3, Chicago 0
April 6 Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 1
April 14 Atlanta United 2, Philadelphia 2
April 20 Cincinnati 2, Atlanta United 1
April 27 Atlanta United 1, Chicago 1
May 4 Minnesota 2, Atlanta United 1
May 7 Atlanta United 3, Charlotte Independence 0 in U.S. Open Cup
May 11 D.C. United 3, Atlanta United 2
May 15 Cincinnati 1, Atlanta United 0
May 18 Atlanta United 1, Nashville 1
May 21 Atlanta United 0 (5), Charleston 0 (4) in U.S. Open Cup
May 25 LAFC 1, Atlanta United 0
May 29 Atlanta United 3, Miami 1
June 2 vs Charlotte, 4:30 p.m.
June 15 vs. Houston, 7:30 p.m.
June 19 at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m.
June 22 at St. Louis, 8:30 p.m.
June 29 vs. Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
July 3 at New England, 7:30 p.m.
July 6 at Real Salt Lake, 9:30 p.m.
July 13 at Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
July 17 vs. NYCFC, 7:30 p.m.
July 20 vs. Columbus, 7:30 p.m.
July 26 vs. D.C. United in Leagues Cup, 7:30 p.m.
Aug. 4 vs. Santos Laguna in Leagues Cup, 4 p.m.
Aug. 24 at L.A. Galaxy, 10:30 p.m.
Aug. 31 at Charlotte, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 14 vs. Nashville, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 18 vs. Miami, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 21 at Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 2 vs. Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 5 vs. Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 19 at Orlando, 6 p.m.
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