Atlanta United learned lessons from loss to Red Bulls

That game, that important lesson about playoff atmosphere and execution, on Sept. 30 went poorly, according to Atlanta United players Kevin Kratz and Julian Gressel, for several reasons.

“The Red Bulls had a really good day in terms of pressure, intensity,” Gressel said. “Putting us in spots where they wanted us and where we didn’t have the sharpest day playing out of the back and through pressure. All came together and caused it to look the way it looked.”

The Red Bulls were able to out-execute Atlanta United for several reasons.

First, the Red Bulls know their tactics and strategies, honed across the ownership’s other teams in Austria and Germany. In the U.S., the Red Bulls play a high press, with Tyler Adams winning balls in the middle and Kaku making passes into space for striker Bradley Wright-Phillips to take advantage of. The fullbacks drive deep into the opponent’s half to keep the pressure going. The centerbacks, Aaron Long and Tim Parker, play a high line so that if opponents do try to play over the top of the strikers, midfielders and fullbacks are there to head the ball back into the opponent’s half.

Their goal is simple and was effective against Atlanta United. New York had 11 shots, four on goal, and pinged 21 crosses into the penalty box.

“Win the ball very high up the field, only 1-2-3 passes to get in shooting distance in the box,” Kratz said.

Second, Atlanta United lacked intensity. It failed to win a majority of the 50/50 balls or tackles.

“When you don’t have the intensity that you didn’t bring and the 50-50 balls are going their way, it’s difficult to get relief from high pressure,” Kratz said.

Third, facing the pressure, Atlanta United continued to try to play out of the back through gaps that didn’t exist. Gressel said that Red Bulls were adept at pushing Atlanta United back into the corners and against the sidelines where they could bring up numbers and choke off passing lanes. Instead of taking the safe route and playing over the top with long, lower-percentage passes, Atlanta United persistently tried to play the shorter, higher-percentage pass because that’s what the team has been doing since its first training camp in Jan. 2017 in Bradenton, Fla.

“Bit stubborn trying to play, and then overplayed, overplayed, overplayed and played right into their hands,” Gressel said.

The good news for Atlanta United is it learned from that defeat and applied those lessons in sweeping away NYCFC in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

First, Atlanta United played with intensity, winning a far greater number of duels (25 to NYCFC’s 28) across the two legs.

Second, it played smarter, deciding that reducing its margin for error was the key to advancing to the MLS Cup.

In the first leg in New York, which Atlanta United won 1-0, instead of trying to build out of the back on the tiny pitch at Yankee Stadium it frequently played long passes behind the defense to runs made by Josef Martinez and Miguel Almiron.

In the second leg at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the team applied its own pressure to maintain possession. When it lost the ball, the defense had no qualms playing balls over the lines if the shorter pass wasn’t available.

“Something we have to have as an option,” Kratz said. “Good to keep possession but sometimes you need  these runs to get into spaces.”

Put the lessons together, and Gressel thinks the playoff series will be played differently than the game in New Jersey seven weeks ago.

“It’s going to be a very different game,” he said. “It’s a playoff game and we’ve shown the past two games we aren’t that stubborn or naive.”