Atlanta United’s starting 11 for Wednesday’s game at D.C. United will feature a few changes, I think.
First, because Carlos Carmona will serve a one-game suspension after receiving his fifth yellow card of the season in last week’s 3-1 win over Columbus, I think Kevin Kratz will slide into the role beside Jeff Larentowicz.
Second, I think Josef Martinez will come off the bench one more time, which means Hector Villalba will start at striker and Julian Gressel will start at right midfielder.
Frankly, Atlanta United should be able to beat D.C. United without Martinez in the starting lineup. If he rests on Wednesday, he likely will start Saturday’s game against Colorado, with Almiron possibly resting with an eye on the U.S. Open Cup game at Miami in a week.
It wouldn’t shock me to see Gressel and Kratz paired at defensive midfielder to give Larentowicz a break. Gerardo Martino said he wanted to sub him out in the last game, but couldn’t.
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