Dion Pereira did many things well for Atlanta United in Wednesday’s 3-0 win against Minnesota at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
In his second consecutive start, Pereira torched Hassani Dotson time after time. He created a team-high four chances. He was a consistent threat. Known for his dribbling, Pereira even made a card-worthy tackle late in the game.
The native of England has gained confidence since his first meeting with manager Frank de Boer. The first handshake then was the opposite of his performance Wednesday. Weak. Not aggressive.
“I said this is not a hand, man,” de Boer said. “You have to give a really firm hand. The hand of a man. That was a little bit of the problem. He has to be a little bit of a man. Go to the gym. Be aggressive.”
Pereira listened, slowly gained confidence and impressed the coaches.
Before his starts, Pereira came off the bench four times, each to try to spark the offense.
Pereira earned his first start in last week’s game at Real Salt Lake. He played OK. Put into the lineup to take on his defender one-on-one because de Boer said he is one of the best on the team at that, Pereira didn’t create any chances. Still, de Boer and captain Michael Parkhurst said that Pereira had a bright future with the team.
De Boer stuck with the 20-year-old, giving him another start against Minnesota in place of the injured Hector Villalba.
Pereira started attacking immediately, twice beating Dotson to the end line to put in crosses in the first 20 minutes. Pereira finished with five successful dribbles. He always looked in control, rarely losing the ball with a poor first touch or dribble. The evidence is only one unsuccessful dribble.
“His work rate today, and the last games was tremendous,” de Boer said. “He was a constant threat for the opponent. He has to continue that aggressiveness, not just be a beautiful player. In a game, in every league, you have to do more. What are you doing when you don’t have the ball? Now, he understands that better, and it’s nice to see him picking that up. He’s listening to the players and staff, and his rewards is getting the playing time these last couple of games.”
Pereira said that he felt he played much better than he did at Real Salt Lake.
“Obviously, getting at my man every time, which after the first time was a confidence boost, then just put a ball in the box for Josef (Martinez),” he said.
And Pereira explained that first handshake. Like his game, it’s also improving.
“I think that is one thing all the managers and everyone was commenting on when I first came here,” he said. “Back home, when I shake my mate’s hands, it is a lot more aggressive, but it is kind of a respect thing back home. It is just a normal handshake, but here, you are learning every day, ‘Get physical, physical,’ and it starts with the handshake.”
Pereira seems likely to get another start Saturday when Atlanta United hosts Chicago. The team will then go into the international break. It won’t play again until its first match in the U.S. Open Cup on June 12. Its next league game will be at Toronto on June 26.
“He did was asked of him, what he wanted, and he has to stay on that path,” Martinez said. “He can’t think that because he had a good game that he can relax. In soccer, sometimes, you have good games and sometimes you have bad games, but the important thing is to always keep your head level and keep working, and I’m sure he’ll continue to give 100 percent.”
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