2026 Season Preview: What changes did the offseason bring?
Recapping Atlanta United's offseason. How did we get here?
This is part one of a week-long series previewing the 2026 Atlanta United season. These are all free, but please consider a premium subscription for access to all of our written, audio, and video content for the whole season.
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.
Great to set expectations early 😬
I don't think all of our 2025 issues are mutually exclusive. I have no doubt that Tata will fix one of them, which was a lack of identity. Hopefully clearer tactics will follow and we will at least look a little more comfortable.
Can he fix whatever was broken with ELL? We know he's capable, but something was wrong with how he was being used and an ineffective pipeline to him.
Can he make Miranchuk look better than a sub-standard CAM? I don't know, because it's hard to fix slow. He's just the player he is and feels like a bad fit for MLS, but maybe I'll be proven wrong.
Related, can he get Miggy and Miranchuk on together while still maximizing their strengths? Again, don't know. I think it will look somewhat better because of the other improvements to everything else, but it may always be a hinderance until one of them is gone.