Atlanta United’s Jamal Thiare’s work proves important

Jamal Thiare admitted he was a little tired after scoring two goals to lead Atlanta United past favored Inter Miami in the MLS playoffs.

Thiare’s goals, which came two minutes apart in the first half, were what teammate Dax McCarty called the perfect counterpunch after Miami took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Matias Rojas in the 17th minute.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Thiare said. “Lately I haven’t been very lucky with my goal-scoring opportunities, but everything went great tonight, and it’s a fantastic memory for myself and for the team.”

Thiare has shown a tendency to score in bunches. He scored two of his six goals in the regular season in one match against Chicago on March 31 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. His final goal in the regular season secured a 2-1 win at Orlando on Decision Day and, combined with two other results, secured Atlanta United’s place in the playoffs.

Thiare isn’t a pretty player. With his long legs and lengthy strides, he looks like a marionette as he runs at defenders. But he was effective in the series.

“It’s what the team needed,” Thiare said. “That’s what he likes to do. I don’t mind running all that much and creating those spaces and running for the team like I did.”

His goals against Inter Miami were somewhat similar. On the first, he caught up to a through pass from Dax McCarty and one-timed a shot into the upper right corner. On the second, McCarty found Alexey Miranchuk, who squared a pass to Thiare for another one-timed shot. Thiare’s expected goals of 1.11 was just a few hundredths of a point less than Lionel Messi’s 1.13.

Interim manager Rob Valentino said part of Atlanta United’s tactics were to try to drag one of Miami’s centerbacks out of the formation. Miranchuk was the asset on the first goal, drawing two defenders close to him in the center of the pitch and opening space for Thiare.

“It never gets drawn up exactly right,” Valentino said.

Thiare’s work wasn’t done. He constantly stressed Miami’s backline with runs into space. Thiare attempted to win at least two penalty kicks by taking on defenders in the 18-yard box. Referee Lukasz Szpala burned some calories waving away Thiare’s pleas.

“I thought Jamal was fantastic in terms of his work rate and defensive ability and holding the ball,” captain Brad Guzan said. “Those are huge plays that he gets zero credit for on the stat sheet and the numbers and all that. But those are big, big plays for us.”

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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