Atlanta United (1-1-0) will play host to Orlando (0-2-1) at 7 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The game will be televised for free this weekend on Apple TV. You can follow Doug Roberson’s coverage on X (formerly known as Twitter) @DougRobersonAJC.
Orlando manager: Oscar Pareja
Orlando away record: 0-1-0
Atlanta United home record: 1-0-0
Orlando goals for/against: 2/8
Orlando expected goals for/against: 5.6/5.0
Atlanta United goals for/against: 4/2
Atlanta United expected goals for/against: 3.7/2.5
Atlanta United all-time vs Orlando: 9-4-7, 3-2-4 at home
Orlando key players
Duncan McGuire: 2 goals
Martin Ojeda: 1 assist
Rafael Santos: 1 assist
Atlanta United key players
Giorgos Giakoumakis: Three goals
Thiago Almada: One goal
Injury reports
Atlanta United
None reported.
Orlando
Questionable: César Araújo (right ankle) and Jack Lynn (right lower leg).
Suspension: Wilder Cartagena (red card).
Storylines to watch
1. First goal. When Atlanta United scores first, particularly at home, it creates a momentum that few opponents have been able to withstand. The Five Stripes are 59-6-10 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium when they put in that first goal.
2. Giakoumakis staying hot. Giorgos Giakoumakis scored three goals in last week’s win against New England. After Sunday’s match, he will join Greece for its coming Euro qualifying match against Kazakhstan, which means he will miss Atlanta United’s next match. It will be important for Giakoumakis to continue to create scoring chances, and also important for manager Gonzalo Pineda to make sure that backup striker Jamal Thiare gets significant minutes so that he will be ready for the next match.
3. Defensive focus. Orlando is a team that is struggling to create scoring chances, so it’s imperative for Atlanta United’s back line and midfielders not to lose focus and allow Orlando to take advantage of any opportunities it may create.
What was said
“They’re really good in possession. I think that’s one thing I’ve learned throughout the years with Oscar (Pareja) is that he’s got that South American, Colombian blood where he wants to have the ball. I see, quite honestly, a lot of the things that we try to do well, I know they tried to do well at the same time, so it should be a very fun game to be a part of, should be a very tactical battle in terms of what adjustments are going to be made in the game.” – Dax McCarty
“If we defend good, we attack better. So that’s what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to defend good to try to score more goals and try to be more efficient.” – Xande Silva
“Can we just keep the energy high, keep the energy high and be able to be sharper when we are in possession of the ball. I think those two things are important. The energy that they applied the last game was amazing. And we need very similar energy for this game.” – Gonzalo Pineda
“We need sometimes to calm down a little bit‚ to have a little bit of balance, but I like it. We are Atlanta. We are an offensive team, and we want to make the chances to score goals every time we have the ball.” – Stian Gregersen, on the team’s attack-minded fullbacks
Atlanta United’s predicted 11
Goalkeeper Brad Guzan
Centerback Derrick Williams
Centerback Stian Gregersen
Right fullback Brooks Lennon
Left fullback Caleb Wiley
Defensive midfielder Bartosz Slisz
Midfielder Tristan Muyumba
Attacking midfielder Thiago Almada
Winger Saba Lobjanidze
Winger Xande Silva
Striker Giorgos Giakoumakis
For more content about Atlanta United
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Atlanta United coverage on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Atlanta United’s 2024 schedule
Feb. 24 Columbus 1, Atlanta United 0
March 9 Atlanta United 4, New England 1
March 17 vs. Orlando, 7 p.m., FS1
March 23 at Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
March 31 vs. Chicago, 3:30 p.m., FOX
April 6 at NYCFC, 7:30 p.m.
April 14 vs. Philadelphia, 2:30 p.m., FOX
April 20 vs. Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m.
April 27 at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.
May 4 vs. Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.
May 11 vs. D.C. United, 7:30 p.m.
May 15 at Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m.
May 18 at Nashville, 1:30 p.m.
May 25 vs. LAFC, 7:30 p.m.
May 29 at Miami, 7:30 p.m.
June 2 vs Charlotte, 4:30 p.m., FOX
June 15 vs. Houston, 7:30 p.m.
June 19 at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m.
June 22 at St. Louis, 8:30 p.m.
June 29 vs. Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
July 3 at New England, 7:30 p.m.
July 6 at Real Salt Lake, 9:30 p.m.
July 13 at Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
July 17 vs. NYCFC, 7:30 p.m.
July 20 vs. Columbus, 7:30 p.m.
Aug. 24 at L.A. Galaxy, 10:30 p.m.
Aug. 31 at Charlotte, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 14 vs. Nashville, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 18 vs. Miami, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 21 at Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 2 vs. Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 5 vs. Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 19 at Orlando, 6 p.m.
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