Ezequiel Barco and Alan Franco, two of Atlanta United’s Designated Players, have returned to training with Atlanta United and are available for selection for Saturday’s game against Nashville, manager Gabriel Heinze said Thursday.
Barco, an attacking midfielder, has missed the past four games because of a lower body injury sustained at New England on May 1. Barco has one goal in three league appearances this season. In his absence, Heinze played either Marcelino Moreno, Emerson Hyndman or Franco Ibarra in the middle of the formation. The team has taken five points with three goals scored from the three league games Barco missed.
It will be interesting to see if Heinze uses Barco on Saturday. After the game, Atlanta United won’t play again until it hosts Philadelphia on June 20, which would give Barco more time to recover. He was called up by Argentina’s U23 national team for its pending friendlies against Denmark on June 8 and Saudi Arabia on June 11. It is not a FIFA-mandated event so the club doesn’t have to release Barco.
Franco, a centerback, missed the past game after leaving the Montreal game at halftime with an ankle injury. He has two starts in league games this season. In his absence, Heinze selected Anton Walkes to partner with Miles Robinson.
Heinze said that Jurgen Damm, who also suffered an injury against New England, isn’t available. Heinze wasn’t asked about Machop Chol.
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SOUTHERN FRIED SOCCER
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