Stephen Glass sees progress in Atlanta United’s win

Emptying the notebook after Atlanta United’s 1-0 win against Dallas at Mercedes-Benz Stadium:

Subs. Interim manager Stephen Glass said that centerback Miles Robinson and midfielder Matheus Rossetto were subbed off because of “issues.” Glass said the decision was made to try to make the players available for Sunday’s game at Chicago. Glass then began showing the versatility of the players with the subs. Franco Escobar moved from the right fullback to centerback in place of Robinson. Brooks Lennon moved from right midfielder to right fullback in place of Escobar. Adam Jahn, one of the subs that came in to start the second half, moved into the central striker role played well by Jon Gallagher, who moved out wide. Eric Remedi came in for Rossetto and dropped into a defensive midfielder role.

“In terms of Jon’s performance, he did well as a center forward, but we just felt Adam – when we had to make changes at halftime – was a good choice," Glass said. "We didn’t go straight like-for-like. It’s easy just to take off Miles (Robinson) and put in a center half and switch a midfielder for a midfielder and leave everything else similar. But there was a chance tactically to do something different, and I think we got the result of that early in the second half, which was great. And then we were forced to sit in a little bit, which is probably understandable considering the run that we’ve been on recently. But again, the resiliency of the group was fantastic in the end.”

Lennon agreed.

“It is great to see," he said. "We’ve had a lot of guys go down this season. Especially tonight, we had a lot of substitutions, guys coming in areas that they don’t normally play in and coming in and doing their job. And that is all you can ask, coming in and affecting the game in a positive way. I think everyone that was on the field tonight did really well and we just need to carry this momentum into Sunday in Chicago and keeps these wins rolling. We are in a big playoff race right now and this club needs to be in the playoffs.”

No DPs. The team played without Ezequiel Barco, its remaining Designated Player, for the second consecutive game. Barco suffered an undisclosed leg injury last week. The team lost its next game, 2-1 against Inter Miami.

Glass was pleased with how the team played Wednesday. Dallas also started without any of its DPs. It brought on two in the second half.

“It shows the strength of the group, the resilience and the belief they have in what we are doing,” Glass said. “We knew Dallas were coming in off the back of three very good wins. A very vibrant group, similar in a way to Miami. It was pleasing that we could stand up to that tonight.”

Gallagher and Mulraney. Gallagher and Jake Mulraney were lively throughout their time on the pitch. Gallagher finished with two shots, one on goal and a chance created. His shot on goal was saved but resulted in the corner kick that resulted in the game-winning penalty kick.

Mulraney took four shots, putting two on goal, and created a chance.

Both players attacked Dallas' defenders on the dribble and their speed was a threat. It was the second consecutive start for both players.

“They did everything we asked of them," Glass said. "(Mulraney) has two good feet, and he’s dangerous when he’s on the front foot the way he was tonight. They can both be very proud of their performances.”

Escobar’s leadership. Escobar had arguably his best game this season. His body language was positive. He avoided receiving yellow cards. It was the type of a game of the leader that Escobar said last week that he wants to be.

“When his body language is correct and his work rate is what it always is, people will follow that,” Glass said. “Franco can be a leader for this group absolutely.”

ExploreTeam rallies after team meeting

Speaking up. Larentowicz, who scored the winning goal in the 55th minute, spoke to his teammates before the game and had this message:

“I gave two simple points tonight," he said. "It starts with one play. One play leads to the next and the next and if you’re making the right decisions it leads to a win and you can build that momentum. The second was that you have to communicate. You can’t be half-asleep on the field while you’re communicating so if you’re screaming you’re getting someone to come in and help you defensively, you’re pushing someone on to press, you’re talking to the guy next to you to get in the right shape. Then the team is going to be in a better position.”

Etc. Larentowicz scored his 42nd career MLS goal, and 12th from the penalty spot. He is 12-for-15 in his career, with his last coming Sept. 11, 2015.

Larentowicz made his 430th MLS appearance during the regular season. It is second most by a field player in league history behind Kyle Beckerman (493).
Larentowicz started his 391st MLS regular-season match, third all-time by a field player behind Kyle Beckerman (459) and Chad Marshall (404).
Larentowicz has scored or assisted in three consecutive matches.