Atlanta United’s Pedro Amador delivers useful - and then some

Atlanta United’s Pedro Amador pushes the ball forward slightly with his left foot, readying to cross it into Inter Miami’s 18-yard box.

Amador sees Alexey Miranchuk making a run toward the goal. He’s covered. Amador sees Saba Lobjanidze making a run. He too is covered.

Amador then sees Bartosz Slisz making a run to the back post. He is not covered.

Amador strikes the ball. It starts toward the goal before curving back toward the field. It then dips just as Slisz jumps and heads it into the goal to lift Atlanta United to a 3-2 victory and into the next round of the MLS playoffs. It was Amador’s MLS-leading fourth assist in the playoffs.

“It’s credit to my hard work, but also to my teammates,” he said.

The crosses are quick and easy to repeat. Most of Amador’s four assists in the regular season, and those in the playoffs, have had the same trajectory. The dipping action at the end is what makes it enticing for attackers because the ball seems to elude the head of a defender in front of the attacker and land right on the head of the attacker.

Amador said he’s never tried to model the technique of hitting the ball from anyone else’s. It’s just the result of how he strikes it.

When he signed with Atlanta United during the summer, during one of his first training sessions, he was hitting crosses to Daniel Rios who commented on the late action of the passes.

“It’s been useful, and it puts the (players) in a good position,” Amador said.

Amador has the highest percentage of primary assists (0.7) per 90 minutes in MLS regular season and playoff matches since his first match played on July 20 against Columbus. That ratio is better than Lionel Messi’s and Lucho Acosta’s.

“I think it’s something that he’s taught himself,” Atlanta United interim manager Rob Valentino said. “He works on crossing a lot, set-piece delivery, extra stuff, all the time.”

It’s not just how Amador hits the ball; it’s also where he hits it. The location in front of the goalkeeper and behind the backline is reminiscent of the types of crosses that former Atlanta United player Julian Gressel used to hit. These come from the left side instead of the right. And they come with pace.

“It’s difficult for defenders because there’s indecision, right?” Amador said. “Is it the goalie? Is it the defender? So I tried to put a ball in that space and put it in a position where a player, an attacking player might get the ball.”

The second-most impressive aspect of Amador’s eight assists are that they’ve gone to six different scorers. Amador arrived at Atlanta United in July yet he plays as if he’s been at the franchise for several seasons.

When Amador signed, he said he was going to try his best to adapt but thought it might take time because he was moving from Portugal to a new country, new league and new style of soccer, which he described as more transitional because of the focus on attacking. He credited the coaching staff, teammates and winning for making the transition easier. He said it’s always easier to adapt when a team is winning.

Amador isn’t just about offense. Midfielder Jay Fortune said Amador is a lockdown 1-on-1 defender, as well. Before Amador signed, Valentino said the scouts relayed that he was a top-notch defender. The offense has been a surprise. Because he’s a defender, Amador said he takes more pride in that than he does his crosses. But the crosses are more fun.

“There’s certain players, when they get the ball in certain areas, you kind of know what to expect,” Fortune said. “From him, when he’s in that wide area, it’s a big cross, and he delivers nine times out of 10.”

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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