2026 Atlanta United Season Preview
Your Atlanta United primer on Tata Martino's second tenure, transfers, tactics, predictions and more.
After a bitterly disappointing 2025 season in which gold turned to dust, Atlanta United is back with renewed spirit under Tata Martino, who takes the reigns of the organization for the second time in hopes of returning the club to championship contender status.
Many of the same players remain on the roster, but is it possible the Argentine manager can get out of Latte Lath anything close to what Josef Martinez was under his tutelage? Can he help Miguel Almiron return to form after a year in the wilderness? Can Alexey Miranchuk be the playmaker the club expected him to be? And can all these players work together in a coherent system that puts them in advantageous positions?
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What’s new for Atlanta United in 2026?
by Rob Usry
We’ve officially reached matchweek. The MLS offseason is over and it’s time to get down to business. Before the first ball is kicked on Saturday, let’s take a look back at what’s happened since the final whistle blew on a nightmare of a 2025 season and how we got here.
The Return
A day after the regular season ended, the club announced it had parted ways with head coach Ronny Deila after winning just six MLS matches. After a few weeks of searching, the biggest news of the offseason dropped: Tata Martino was coming back as head coach for the second time in Atlanta United history.
The legendary figure who led the Five Stripes to glory in its first two seasons was chosen to try and pull the team out of the disaster it’s fallen into over the past five or six years. After leaving the club at the end of the magical 2018 season, Tata spent time with the Mexico national team and Inter Miami with mixed results.
His time with El Tri was up and down and ended badly as the team failed to make it out of the group stage for the first time since 1978. With Inter Miami, he led the team to a Supporters’ Shield and broke the MLS single-season points record after welcoming some guy named Lionel Messi. But in the playoffs, the star-studded side fell to a team starting Jamal Thiaré at striker. This loss to Atlanta ended his time in Miami, and after a season off, he’s now making his return to try and save the day.
The Departures
After such a bad season, an offseason of change was inevitable. The biggest departure came before the season ended when club legend Brad Guzan announced his retirement from professional soccer.
The yearly roster decisions brought even more changes. Brooks Lennon had his option declined and left the club. Joining those two long-time players were Leo Afonso, Josh Cohen, and Nyk Sessock. Ronald Hernández also had his option declined but later came back on a one-year contract.
Noah Cobb’s transfer option was officially picked up by the Colorado Rapids, ending his time with the club. The Columbus Crew made a deal to trade for Jamal Thiaré to help replace the departing Jacen Russell-Rowe.
Another big name to leave was Bartosz Slisz. The club agreed to transfer the midfielder to Brøndby IF of the Danish Superliga.
Edwin Mosquera was also sold to Colombian side Independiente Santa Fe, opening a U22 initiative spot.
Players on the 2025 roster who aren’t on the roster anymore: Brad Guzan, Brooks Lennon, Leo Afonso, Josh Cohen, Nyk Sessock, Noah Cobb, Jamal Thiaré, Bartosz Slisz, Edwin Mosquera
The Arrivals
While it was a busy offseason shipping out players, it hasn’t exactly been a two-way street so far. A few new players have been brought in. Two of them are U22 initiative signings, a notable shift in transfer strategy from previous offseasons.
Tomás Jacob joined on a permanent transfer from Necaxa and will take up one of those U22 spots. He is a versatile player who can play as a holding midfielder, right back, or center back.
Another U22 signing was left back Elías Báez from San Lorenzo. He’s a highly rated fullback. But due to paperwork issues, he hasn’t arrived yet and probably won’t see the field for a little while.
The other notable acquisition from outside of the club was goalkeeper Lucas Hoyos. He joined the club as a free agent after his contract with Newell’s Old Boys expired. The 36-year-old appears to be the favorite for the starting spot, as Tata Martino has preferred him in three of the four lineups he’s trotted out in preseason.
Barcelona academy player and U.S. youth national team midfielder Adrian Gill also joined the fold and has looked very promising in the small sample size we got to witness in preseason. It remains to be seen how much he’ll be involved in the squad, but he did sign a first-team contract.
Another young player to keep an eye on is Homegrown player Santiago Pita, who joins the first-team as well.
Players joining the 2026 roster: Tomás Jacob (MF/DEF), Elías Báez (LB), Lucas Hoyos (GK), Adrian Gill (MF), Santiago Pita (MF/W)
A Hole at the Top
The saddest news of the offseason came when the club announced that Garth Lagerwey would be leaving his post as Club President to focus on his treatment for cancer. After being diagnosed in July, Lagerwey stepped away from his post with the hopes of returning. But it was decided in December that he would not return, and the club would hold a global search for his replacement. That search is still ongoing. His successor has not been named and no rumors have emerged.
What Does It All Mean?
No huge, impactful additions to the squad so far means the club is putting all their hopes on Tata Martino being the catalyst for true change. Was Ronny Deila really the main issue for Atlanta United having a catastrophic season? Tata will start the season with a roster that doesn’t look much different than the one Deila ended last season with. We should have an answer to that question relatively soon.
It’s doubtful the club expects Tata’s arrival to magically transform this team from Wooden Spoon candidate to Supporters’ Shield contender. Clearly, they’re confident he will make a difference and turn a bunch of underperforming talent into a competent squad. If that’s the case, not rushing into bad signings and staying patient for the right deals makes all the sense in the world.
This was the offseason of Tata and hopefully a return to some kind of normalcy. Change takes time, but just seeing a team that understands simple soccer concepts and looks like they actually practice together on a daily basis would be a huge improvement from what we saw last season.
Analytical deep dive
by J. Sam Jones
I mean, the key analytic here is 28 points. Or maybe you’re more interested in the team scoring just 38 goals? What about allowing 63? We can nerd deep dive all we want, but there’s absolutely nothing to latch onto from Atlanta United’s 2025 that’s truly positive. But maybe instead of a giant flaming ball of rat king, 2025 might have been a slightly smaller giant flaming ball of rat king.
You might have checked out American Soccer Analysis’s Atlanta United preview last week. Paul Harvey—good follow, check out his stuff when you can—rightly points out that Atlanta United were, technically, historically unlucky last year. ASA’s expected points metric suggested Atlanta United underperformed their underlying numbers by about 15 points. That’s the second biggest underperformance in ASA’s database, which goes back to 2013.
That sounds like cause for optimism, but it’s important to remember 15 extra points for 2025 Atlanta United would have put them on 43 points. Average performance relative to their xG would have meant they missed the playoffs by 10 points.
You also have to consider that this team spent *a lot* of time playing from behind. In even game states, Atlanta United’s average expected goal differential was -0.29, the fourth-worst mark in the league. They were able to do a decent job of piling on xG when they were chasing the game, but, again, it can’t be understated that they were behind like literally all the time. Check these charts from Tony ElHabr on BlueSky.
A couple of things stand out immediately. First, you can see how Atlanta’s xGD compares to other teams when trailing. Their underlyings were among the best in the league in that game state. Then there were the fleeting moments they were leading…
Dear. God.
Take a look in particular at their performance when leading against non-playoff teams. The big thing here is that they…um…practically never led against non-playoff teams. Ballpark estimate here, but it looks like they spent about 5% of their playing time against non-playoff teams actually leading the game. When they actually did lead, their xGD per 90 was -5.46. It’s a hilariously small sample size, but they were spectacularly bad in the brief moments they offered a glimmer of hope.
So, yeah. Technically unlucky. Objectively still terrible.
I’ve mentioned this in multiple places, but I’m willing to blame Ronny Deila’s tactics and man management for some of last year. The tactics were stale and bland. The players were unresponsive and unwilling to give anything extra for a manager they were seemingly out on pretty early in the process. That’s on him.
That isn’t to let the players entirely off the hook, though. This? This is disgusting.
You have three returning players who ended 2025 with positive goals added numbers. One of them is a center back who can’t stay healthy. The other is a left back who the team seems to be trying to replace for basically no reason.
Regardless of how bad things are with the manager, this level of performance is shambolic, especially for your DP and TAM players.
We can at least try and take a “look on the bright side” approach here. There’s an argument that the negative feedback loop became too powerful last year and no one could have put up great numbers. I’m not sure how many players on this team have great numbers in them at this point, but a return to even a baseline level of competency across the board should elevate everyone.
Is that enough to turn them into a team that can…uh…actually take the lead in games? It’s hard to be confident in that right now. But I do think they’ll be improved. It couldn’t be worse.
The Tactics
by Joe Patrick
After years of toiling in mediocrity or worse since Tata Martino left the club after his initial stint, Atlanta United is charging the Argentine to pull an even bigger rabbit out of his hat than the first go-around that culminated in an MLS Cup title.
Martino got to build that team from scratch. This time? More like an episode of Chopped, where Martino will attempt to form a functional team that balances savory and sweet, while being required to use [OPENS BASKET]:
One Miguel Almiron, which is potentially expired but hoping that natural fermentation could expand his shelf life. If good, he’s a core ingredient for Martino’s cooking style.
One Alexey Miranchuk, an exotic flavor for someone like Martino, who prefers his players to have an ability to sprint and press. If accentuated with the right aromatics, we’re told Miranchuk is actually an addition to the dish.
Two broken high-TAM players in Saba Lobjanidze and Stian Gregersen. The view for a comeback seems clearer for Gregersen, which is almost entirely health related. Can Martino get a direct winger like Saba firing similarly to Tito Villalba, who became a supersub goal threat?
And a bouquet garni of homegrown players that will be needed to give full body and flavor to whatever Martino is hoping to build. Young players like Will Reilly, Luke Brennan, Jay Fortune and Matthew Edwards will need to fill in the gaps and elevate the floor that fell out beneath the team last season.
For reasons I neither agree with nor control, we were only able to witness one preseason game this camp. And even though it was played prior to the bulk of the tactical portion of camp, it gave us some things to glean as to how Tata Martino is thinking about deploying his players.
The Shape
The biggest change for Tata Martino’s team versus not just last season, but every season since Martino left is the way the midfield will orient itself and operate with a single pivot. Since Martino left, every manager since has played with a double-pivot, often complementing it with a playmaker like Thiago Almada or Alexey Miranchuk playing ahead near the striker.
Changing midfield in this way is impactful for three reasons. First and most obviously, it’s going to ask different requirements from some players than what they were tasked with under Ronny Deila. Under Martino, midfielders like Stephen Alzate, Jay Fortune, Tristan Muyumba, and others will be asked to do much more in the way of running forward and impacting play in the attacking third.
Secondly, it’s going to change the way Atlanta builds from the back, which will now heavily revolve around the No. 6 (whoever winds up earning Martino’s trust in the role) dropping into the back line to form a back three. This changes the entire structure of the buildup and how players are assembled on the pitch from what we saw in 2025.
We saw Martino utilize a wrinkle in the preseason opener where he used a traditional winger Luke Brennan to serve as the player keeping the width in buildup with boots on chalk. When Martino has a playmaker like Almiron or Miranchuk playing in the flanking attacking areas, they will tuck in narrower to find spaces to receive between lines and the fullback will play the traditional overlap role.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, Martino’s midfield shift means there’s not a natural spot in any of the three roles for either Alexey Miranchuk or Miguel Almiron. But it’s most notable for Miranchuk, because it removes the “No. 10” role from the equation entirely (an ironic move from Martino after all the bickering about who should be the No. 10 last year).
One primary reason the No. 10 role suited Miranchuk specifically is it spared him from doing much sprinting to track streaking fullbacks or other quick players he’d find on the wings. How will he press in this system? Against a back three, a pressing situation is relatively simple man-for-man – if aggressive. But against more common two banks of four, the press will need some pretty consistent communication and muscle memory on how to close down on the ball.
Eastern Conference Tiers
by J. Sam Jones
We’ve talked plenty this week about what Atlanta United might look like in 2026. But what about the rest of the East?
Well, look, this is far from an exact science. For every preseason projection you get right in MLS, there’s an Atlanta United waiting to put up 28 points despite spending over $30 million on DPs. All you can do is take your best guess based on what information already exists. And that information is oftentimes hot garbage.
It’s all a total guessing game. But we’ll do our best to give you a sense of how preseason projections are lining up throughout the conference.
Tier One - Lol. Lmao. Cool. Neat. Awesome. Very Cool.
Inter Miami
The reigning MLS Cup champs lost Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba but added multiple players that project as high level starters. Last year’s Goalkeeper of the Year, Dayne St. Clair joined up this offseason, as did former Portland U22 midfielder David Ayala. They have a new DP striker now too. CF Monterrey’s Germán Berterame is in South Beach. He scored 59 goals in Liga MX over the last four and a half seasons.
There’s a strong chance they’re even better this year.
Tier Two - Willing and able (?) to challenge Inter Miami
Nashville SC
Nashville made the most notable free agent signing of the offseason when they signed longtime San Jose DP winger Cristian Espinoza. He’s normally good for about 14 assists per year. Their three-headed monster in attack (ft. Espinoza, Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge) might be the best attacking trio in MLS this year. The hype has never been stronger in Nashville.
FC Cincinnati
It’s Cincy. They’ve spent the last three years piling up more wins than any other team in MLS history over a three year span. They’re going to be decent to great defensively. They’re going to rely on their match winners like Evander. And they’re going to win a ton of one-goal games. Until the formula changes, expect the formula to stay the same.
Tier Three - Maybe, probably, actually?
Chicago Fire FC
Like Nashville, Chicago are headed into 2026 with an unprecedented amount of hype. The national buzz is that they’ll take a leap forward in year two under Gregg Berhalter. They were already one of the best attacking teams in MLS last year. If they can sort out things defensively even a little, they could quickly turn into a contender. The arrival of Jakob Glesnes from Philly should help with that.
Charlotte FC
Charlotte is generally a high-floor side with an uncertain ceiling. You can generally expect their defense to be solid and for the attack be productive enough to earn points. There are a number of questions though. In particular, at striker and center back. They expect big things out of U22 Idan Toklamati as their No. 9, but he’s (obviously) young and relatively unproven. Even after an excellent second half last season.
It will be even more difficult to replace star center back Adilson Malanda. Actually, maybe the floor isn’t quite as high as most folks are thinking?
Orlando City
Like Charlotte, you typically just expect Orlando to figure things out these days. They’ve made the playoffs for five consecutive seasons now. Even after undergoing big changes this offseason—longtime starters like goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and midfielder Cesar Araujo are gone, among others—they seem to have made a handful of signings that work on paper. They likely won’t challenge for trophies this year, but it would be surprising to see them crater.
Tier Four - Just maybe.
Columbus Crew
The first year of the post-Wilfried Nancy era is going to be fascinating. Former Malmo FF manager Henrik Rydström is in charge now. He apparently has a similar game model to Nancy, but who knows if he can actually reach the same heights as him. That’s in both the results and on-field aesthetics.
They should be just fine. It’s still a very solid roster despite Darlington Nagbe’s retirement. But it’s hard to ignore that Nancy felt like a unicorn in MLS.
Philadelphia Union
The Union have earned the benefit of the doubt. However, there are just so many reasons to doubt this year. Multiple critical pieces exited this offseason. Best XI left back Kai Wagner is gone. Forwards Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre are gone. Center back Jakob Glesnes is gone. Starting midfielder Quinn Sullivan is hurt. There are serious questions across this roster.
But it’s Philly. They’ll probably tag in a few academy kids, find some Best XI-caliber players from the Norwegian second division and call it a day.
NYCFC
NYCFC have had a tough time of it this offseason. They thought they had a replacement for injured DP striker Alonso Martinez, but the deal fell through at the very last second. Now they’re floating a bit. Like Philly, they just get the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise. It will probably be a 50-point team. But their ability to replace Martinez and breakout center back Justin Haak will determine whether they can challenge for trophies.
Tier Five - Probably still bad, but willing to spend enough money to convince people there’s upside
Atlanta United
Maybe this is the year.
Toronto FC
Unlike Atlanta, they have money *and* significant roster space. That they’re definitely going to use. Any day now. Here it comes, I promise. Just wait a…ok…now. How about now? Now?...........now?
Tier Six - Very unlikely to be a playoff team, but, also, MLS happens
New England Revolution
Not having Caleb Porter in charge of their team is a major bonus. But we know next to nothing about how new head coach Marko Mitrovic will affect this team. Will the former USMNT youth coach follow San Diego’s Mikey Varas and Nashville’s BJ Callaghan as the latest USMNTer to produce a great MLS team? Or are there too many holes on this roster for his influence to even matter? I’m leaning toward the latter. But, also, ya know, MLS.
New York Red Bulls
In 2025, they missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade and a half. They’re replacing their starting goalkeeper and best center back. There’s no real reason to believe they’ll be good other than the fact that they were good for like 15 of the last 16 years.
Anyway, Michael Bradley is the head coach of this team and you are absolutely ancient. You had to go get your reading glasses to even understand what I’m saying here. Oh, hey, look out, it’s about time for an early dinner isn’t it? Did you take your medicine today? Shame your kids don’t call as much, huh. Old. So old. Olllllddddd. Wheel is on soon. Can’t miss Wheel.
Tier Seven - Don’t make eye contact and keep walking quickly
CF Montréal
Trading for a homegrown near you!
D.C. United
All you need to know is that their new sporting director makes people call him “Doctor”, has never held a front office job, and that he writes novels about handsome, suave soccer agents that get the girl. (He is, of course, a former agent.)
Predictions
Team MVP
Joe: Latte Lath. I’m holding here. Early last season, the chances in front of goal were there for LL (and others) if not for increasingly clownish errors in the box as the season wore on. Tata Martino has proven his systems can provide elite opportunities for forwards to feast.
Sam: Miguel Almirón. Tata Martino hasn’t shied away from the fact that it kind of has to be Almirón. He’s said from the jump Almirón will be in a “free role” on the pitch. To me that says he’ll drive everything in attack. And I think he’s still got the juice to do it. Not at a 2018 level. But still a high level.
Rob: Alexey Miranchuk. Because if this team is going to be good, he’s going to have to be a big part of it. He’s either the focal point of a rejuvenated side, or he’s shipped out in the summer. Both scenarios seem equally feasible.
Breakout Player
Joe: Matthew Edwards. It’s not going to be pretty, per se, but there’s a pretty path for Matthew Edwards to potentially become the preferred option at RB (which would involve Jacob either remaining as a No. 6 for now or a switch to a back three).
Sam: Tomás Jacob. I just picked the youngest player likely to get the most minutes. I think we’ll see Jacob get consistent time as both a No. 6 and a right back this season. Does that mean I think he’s a locked-in, surefire, starting-caliber player in MLS?…..Look, he’s definitely going to get minutes. And predictions are about setting yourself up to win.
Rob: Santiago Pita. I have to pick someone I guess. He probably has more upside than Luke and will probably get more minutes than Gill. Maybe he’ll turn into a useful role player off the bench and someone who can be rotated into the lineup? Or he won’t play a single minute. Who knows?
Over/Unders
O/U 49.5 goals scored (We’re not setting ourselves the low bar of beating the 38 goals scored in 2025. Will a Tata-led Atlanta United score 50?)
Joe: Over. Imagine predicting under? Like, it’s possible this team could score less than 50, but what kind of godless heathen would predict it for themselves! Jokes aside, Tata’s teams score. If things go poorly, he’ll likely react by being more aggressive vs. bunkering down like Deila’s team.
Sam: Over. Last year’s side managed to put up about 49 goals worth of xG. Regression to the mean and a more coherent team will put them over.
Rob: Over. I’m trying not to be overly optimistic about anything this season. But surely Tata has to unlock something within this squad, at least in attack. He’s too good of a manager not to.
O/U 49.5 goals allowed (last year they allowed SIXTY THREE)
Joe: Over. It’s easy to forget that Tata’s teams had a propensity to get their doors blown off on occasion when making a mid-summer trip to the mid-Atlantic on a random Saturday night. Add in that this group’s talent at the back is significantly worse than the Guzan-LGP-Parkhurst-Larentowicz/Carmona lower lumbar spine of the team.
Sam: Over. With a notable amount of those goals coming earlier in the season compared to later. In a new system predicated on getting numbers forward, there are going to be mistakes and defenders put on an island. Unfortunately, this team isn’t exactly full of 5* athletes ready to save the day with a lung-busting, high-speed sprint when those mistakes happen. Eventually, comfort in the system and a couple of new signings will help level this out…just not in time for Atlanta to hit the under here.
Rob: Over. I see a lot of high-scoring games in this team’s future. While it might be fun to watch. You’re going to be frustrated at times with this team’s back line that still needs some work. Tata is playing with the cards he was dealt. It’s going to take some time for them to figure it out defensively.
O/U 2.5 All-Stars
Joe: Under, and honestly just one All Star would be an upgrade this year. If the defensive record is as inconsistent as I expect it might be, I doubt any of Atlanta’s midfield/defense will get much love. But the scoring output could get one of the DPs the honor.
Sam: Under. The entire team will just be Inter Miami.
Rob: Under. Three is a lot for any team, even the best in the league. They may get one this year, two if everything goes perfectly. I’d bet on no team having three before I’d bet on Atlanta getting three.
Say something crazy like no one can hear you.
Joe: Adrian Gill might be the best theoretical fit of the given options at the No. 6 position. Mind you, no one can hear me say this. Because to have only watched the player with my own eyes one time in a half-speed scrimmage for a half, it would sound absolutely insane. People might start questioning why they fork over seven dollars a month…. but listen listen listen just IN THEORY, okay, in theory, Pep Guardiola kinda revolutioned this type of role in what would be a similar way (not PREDICTING this). But Guardiola The Midfielder found a place in Barcelona’s team as the deepest lying midfielder because he was super smart with his positioning, distribution of the ball, and importantly found a way in tandem with teammates to defend an important area of the pitch.
Tata Martino talked about the type of player the team is searching for in that deep lying role. “We, the coaching staff, and the club are working to be able to bring in a player to play in that position—someone who can play alone, be more positional, offer an outlet with the ball, be able to act as a third center‑back,” he said one month ago. Gill obviously doesn’t totally fit Tata’s description. But the positional stuff, the bravery and tidiness on the ball is there. The physicality isn’t, and Tata surely wants a combative player who can, to borrow his phrase “hold the hand” of less intense teammates like Miranchuk. Just something to think about. Key word being think. Never say it out loud.
Sam: Coaching staffs in soccer are too small. Why aren’t there specialized coaches for each position group? These teams have the resources, why are coaching staffs made up of like five people with unknown responsibilities sitting in a room debating which cones the players will jog through at practice. I demand to be able to call for firing the center backs coach when Juan Berrocal steps out to guard grass while Hany Mukhtar casually slips behind him for his third goal of the match. I don’t know how much I’m kidding here. Why are high school football coaching staffs for single-A schools bigger than the staffs for these billion-dollar organizations?
Oh, and Pedro Amador will lead the team in assists if Tata Martino has the courage to start him for 30 games.
Rob: I was laying in bed one night and thought of a song for Latte Lath to the tune of Macho Man by The Village People. It was amazing but I was too scared to share it with the world out of fear of being mocked and ridiculed. They can’t handle my genius.
Atlanta United wins a trophy if…
Joe: Tata finds the magic touch in getting Atlanta United to… defend actually. It’s the same way he got the team to win an MLS Cup. Martino will get this team playing aggressively on the front foot. The question is if they can find the balance to make it sustainable game to game. Atlanta United hit their best long stretch of form in the 2018 regular season after Tata Martino went away from his favored 4-3-3 to a 3-5-2. I wonder if something similar will be the case this season given the roster that remains under construction.
Sam: They really commit to the U.S. Open Cup. Yeah, that’s right, they’re in the U.S. Open Cup this year. And the best team in the competition is probably…Chicago? It’s basically the NIT to Leagues Cup’s Big Dance at this point. But a trophy is a trophy.
Rob: Don Garber invents a new trophy for the most entertaining team to watch.
Atlanta United finishes Top 4 in East if…
Joe: For one, I think Lucas Hoyos has to be good. Why Hoyos specifically? Well, Atlanta fans have seen how many points are choked away when with gaffes between the sticks — certainly enough to keep the team out of the top four. And even if Hibbert replaces Hoyos eventually and is very good, my guess is the change will have happened too late.
Sam: This feels like a 99th percentile outcome. All three DPs need to look rejuvenated, finishing luck needs to finally go Atlanta United’s way again and summer signings—that can arrive with as many as 20 games left due to the new transfer window dates—need to be spot on.
Rob: …literally everything goes right. The DPs figure out how to play with each other and stay healthy. They figure out the midfield and back line. Sign some good players in the summer. Fourth seems like the ceiling, if we’re being honest.
Atlanta misses the playoffs again if…
Joe: Unfortunately, this scenario is a crystal clear visualization in the minds of Atlanta United fans. Atlanta misses the playoffs if Miguel Almiron and Alexey Miranchuk cannot improve their performances, the roster issues drag on late into the secondary window trying to move players out so they can spend, and overworked core players suffering injuries.
Sam: This slow and unathletic team can’t be saved by improved tactics, the DPs still look bad, and the rest of the East lives up to its billing (and more). They’ll have to jump some teams that look very solid on paper just to get into the postseason.
Rob: Injuries pile up. Tata doesn’t magically turn all of these fringe players into better players. Locker room chemistry goes awry with the different cultures colliding. There are scenarios where this thing can go bad again.
From 1-10 (no lower) where does Atlanta United finish in the Eastern Conference?
Joe: Give me eighth. Final Answer.
Sam: I’m offended that I can’t go lower. If I have to, I will reverse jinx the hell out of this until it’s fixed. And, also, ya know, I definitely think they could finish lower. The range of outcomes right now seems to be as low as 12th (ahead of D.C., Montréal, and another bad team) and as high as fourth (behind Miami, Nashville, and another good team). For now, I’ll say they finish in eighth but get hot enough at the end of the season to convince us good things are coming in the sprint season.
Rob: I predict a season that will be a mixture of fun and frustrating that ends with a seventh-place finish and a return to the playoffs.
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