Atlanta United vs. Orlando "It's not a rivalry" City SC Mercedes-Benz Stadium — Atlanta June 30 — 7 pm ET ESPN MLSsoccer.com preview here. AJC.com preview here. Atlanta's draw with Portland last week means they still lead the conference but could be surpassed as other teams match the number of games played, so the onus is on to get back to winning. What better way to do that than to punish a struggling Orlando side that seems hell-bent on making this a derby. Keeping it simple. Garza and McCann are joined by Nagbe on the unavailable list, so expect Gressel or Kratz to cover central mid with Tito Villalba coming in if the former gets the positional nod. I hate losing Gressel's delivery from out wide but Tito provides such an alternate dynamic to the attack I feel Atlanta has to get him on the field more frequently. Orlando, meanwhile, is sinking. For a spell the move to acquire Dom Dwyer appeared to pay off shrewdly (knowing Larin would be moved in the off season) and Orlando was threatening near the top 3 of the table. They've since dropped 6 in a row and simply can't find their offensive rhythm. This SHOULD BE a game tailor made for an Atlanta team looking to bust open. If the Stripes play like last week there's no way Orlando should be able to keep up, and surely some of these almost-goals will turn into definitive goals, right? 4-0, Atlanta.
Agree with your last paragraph. If Martinez wears his finishing boots we win handily. If not, I see another pull your game wear we dominate possession, but any cheap one we give up turns the game into one of frustration instead of fun.
Largest attendance in world football yesterday, including two World Cup matches. Soccer will never make it in the South. (Nevermind that the two WC matches were in smaller stadiums, but still...)
Good call on the scoreline, GunnerJacket! Gressel continues to amaze. Plug him in anywhere and he seemingly excels. his pass on the first goal was simply sublime. What a crazy good asset we have in this guy. Can play anywhere and logs a ton of minutes Felt good to pound the Loins. For some reason these guys get under my skin