ATLANTA – They’re the best team in MLS when it comes to putting the ball into the back of the opponents’ net. But keeping the ball out of their own? That’s another story.
Atlanta United are set to enter a challenging stretch of five games in two weeks, starting with Wednesday night’s visit to D.C. United (7:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE). And to be successful during this stretch, they will need tighten things up in the back.
Atlanta bagged three points at home with a 3-1 win against Columbus Crew SC on Saturday. But the defense struggled to keep their visitors from getting in behind them throughout the first half. In fact, if it weren’t for a quality save from Alec Kann and missed opportunities from Crew SC’s Ethan Finlay, Atlanta could have been down a few goals within the first 10 minutes of the match. And Atlanta once again gave up an early lead when Federico Higuain equalized for Columbus in the 27th minute.
“We won the game, but still have a long way to go,” said ATL UTD left back Greg Garza. “We have to turn the page as quickly as possible and get ourselves ready for D.C. in the next three days.”
Atlanta like to apply pressure high up the field; this causes problems for the other team’s defenders, yet leaves them susceptible to the counterattacks. It’s one reason the Five Stripes have given up 23 goals this season.
Atlanta manager Tata Martino doesn’t believe his players need to change their style of play, but he does think they need to be more judicious when applying pressure in the final third.
“It’s important for us to press,” said Martino. “Because when we press, it helps us defend, but at other times I think we need to fall back because sometimes when you do press so hard, it puts our defenders in tough spots as well.”
Another way Atlanta can defuse the counter is to keep the passing crisp as possible out of the back. Captain Michael Parkhurst admitted that didn’t always happen in the first 45 minutes against Crew SC.
“You know, myself particularly, the passing wasn’t sharp tonight, especially in the first half,” he said. “It becomes a little contagious. Credit to Columbus for making it difficult for us.
“In the second half,” he added, “we were much tidier and very good on the counterattack.”
Atlanta have also struggled with set-piece defending throughout the year, and Garza pointed out that though set pieces weren’t a factor in Saturday's match, they will be in the coming weeks.
“We didn’t play against a very tall team today, but especially when we play teams such as [D.C. United], they use set pieces to their benefit,” said Garza. “It’s a much different game than what you’ll see from Columbus.
“As long as we have that concentration level as high as possible, I think we can figure that out.”
Unfortunately for Atlanta, they’ll face D.C. without defensive midfield stalwart Carlos Carmona, who will miss Wednesday’s match after picking up his fifth yellow card against Crew SC. His d-mid partner Jeff Larentowicz will be tasked with picking up the slack in Carmona’s absence, and knows how important it is for Atlanta to defend well in the coming weeks.
“This is a month when we have a lot of games very quickly,” said. “If you win them, you can get on a roll.”
