Atlanta United goalkeeper Brad Guzan will move from the sidelines to the TV booth to serve as an analyst for Tuesday’s friendly against Pachuca at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
He will be the second Atlanta United player or former player to serve in that role. Jeff Larentowicz also has worked as the analyst for the MLS team’s games.
Tuesday’s game will be televised by Bally Sports Southeast.
Guzan, 37, suffered a season-ending Achilles injury April 16 in a home league game against Cincinnati. He has made 150 appearances in regular-season and playoff games for the Five Stripes.
In interviews since joining the team from Middlesbrough during the inaugural 2017 season, Guzan has shown an ability to explain the nuances of the formation, tactics, emotions and mentality of the team in easy-to-understand ways.
Some of his better quotes:
“You might as well have been playing on the beach. Guys were flicking the ball up and trying to pass it in the air. It was crazy. Conditions in the second half, it was a disgrace to be out there.” – on playing at Columbus during a heavy rain in 2019.
“You look at some of the chances that we had, and it’s the same old story. You look at a lot of the games where we’ve either dropped points or we’ve hung on and found a way. But in these games, goals define games. Plain and simple.” – after giving up a 1-0 lead for a 1-1 draw against NYCFC in 2021.
“We weren’t good the moment we stepped on the pitch. They were better than us in every aspect of the game in the first half. We talked about it being a playoff game. We talked about it being a real game. We talked about knowing they were going to come out flying in the first minute. We weren’t good enough.” – after a 4-1 loss at NYCFC in 2019.
“Frustration. Disappointment. Anger. We know as a team we didn’t get the job done. We failed. We let a lot of people down in the process.” – after the U.S. lost to Trinidad and Tobago in 2017, which eliminated it from qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.
“At this level, whether it’s the NBA, the NFL, Major League Baseball, NHL, whatever professional league, very rarely will you see a manager go and make Josef Martinez even better or change Josef Martinez, his habits or ways that he trains or make him a better player.
“The job then of the manager is essentially man-management and how do you get the best out of Josef Martinez consistently day in and day out. And I think he does a very good job of having those relationships, whether it be small conversations inside the training facility, whether it be off the field, on the field, talking soccer, talking about family, building those relationships are massive at this level, I think if you ask any professional athlete, they would much rather give everything they have for a manager that not only cares about them as the athlete but as the person as well.” – on the relationships with players being built by manager Gonzalo Pineda ahead of the 2022 season.
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Atlanta United’s 2022 MLS schedule
Feb. 27 Atlanta United 3, Sporting KC 1
March 5 Colorado 3, Atlanta United 0
March 13 Atlanta United 2, Charlotte 1
March 19 Atlanta United 3, Montreal 3
April 2 Atlanta United 1, D.C. United 0
April 10 Charlotte 1, Atlanta United 0
April 16 Atlanta United 0, Cincinnati 0
April 24 Miami 2, Atlanta United 1
April 30 Montreal 2, Atlanta United 1
May 7 Atlanta United 4, Chicago 1
May 15 Atlanta United 2, New England 2
May 21 Atlanta United 2, Nashville 2
May 28 Columbus 2, Atlanta United 1
June 19 vs. Miami, 3 p.m., ESPN2
June 25 at Toronto, 7:30 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
June 30 at New York Red Bulls, 8 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
July 3 at NYCFC, 5 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
July 9 vs. Austin, 7 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
July 13 vs. Real Salt Lake, 7:30 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
July 17 vs. Orlando, 3 p.m., ABC
July 24 at L.A. Galaxy, 9:30 p.m., FS1
July 30 at Chicago, 5 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
Aug. 6 vs. Seattle, 3 p.m., ABC
Aug. 13 at Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m. BSSO/BSSE
Aug. 17 vs. New York Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
Aug. 21 at Columbus, 5:30 p.m., FS1
Aug. 28 vs. D.C. United, 4 p.m., UNIV
Aug. 31 at Philadelphia, 7 p.m., FS1
Sept. 4 at Portland, 5:30 p.m., FOX
Sept. 10 vs. Toronto, 7:30 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
Sept. 14 at Orlando, 6 p.m., BSSO/BSSE
Sept. 17 vs. Philadelphia, 3:30 p.m., UniMas
Oct. 1 at New England, 1 p.m., UniMas
Oct. 9 vs. NYCFC, TBD, BSSO/BSSE
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