Atlanta United Express Lane: The NYCFC Match In 10 Items Or Less

Here we are, Atlanta United fan…

Consecutive 3-1 losses at home to DC United and now a road loss to NYCFC at Yankee Stadium mean what exactly what?

Let’s take a peek at what went down and what can be going forward.

NYCFC should sign David Villa to a contract extension EVERY WEEK! (Especially, if he keeps doing things like this on offense.  

Atlanta United got caught flat-footed at a key time, right out of the gates in the second half, and can’t afford those kind of lapses going forward.

Understand, this is a universal trait. This is no different from any other side, but for expansion teams, these instances could be more taxing of a result than for experienced sides.

Agreed, getting the ball off the line TWICE in rapid fire is huge, but NYCFC put the pedal down from the beginning and didn’t let up.

The following moment is considered by NYCFC as their “Moment of the Month,” but it shows two things; one about luck and the other about planning…

Notice the ball went off Wallace’s back heel and he wasn’t even looking at the entry pass. At the same time, the overlap on a short pitch caught United’s defense in a numbers game.

Carlos Carmona, who knew? No complaints from Atlanta United fans on a day where the offense was frustrated, but for moments like this going forward its good to know…

Time for a graphic:

You’ll see that NYCFC takes advantage of their turf and it shows. The home team had a distinct attack plan.

Looking at the three graphics, Rodney Wallace and Miguel Almiron were the “straws” for their respective teams. NYCFC had more deep passes and out-Atlanta-United Atlanta United. When the #5Stripes are in their groove, its quick possessions and very few passes in transition. That didn’t happen for the visitors in the Bronx this past weekend…

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Atlanta United was trying to connect in short passes and, simply, not shooting enough. Carmona’s example above was more of a, “why not?” moment. His side needed more of those.

The absences re-enforced their level of importance…

No Yamil Asad. No Josef Martinez. No Jacob Peterson.

That means you can’t bring experience off your bench, you don’t have a talented winger, and your leading scorer is still rehabbing an injury.

Head coach Tata Martino and his staff had to, again, rework his plan.

Portland is another tough road game for a team that has had a brutal road schedule so far this season. 

This is a stretch of six of seven games on the road. Seattle, Toronto, Montreal, Real Salt Lake, home for DC United, then wrapping up with NYCFC and Portland. The team has done better on the road than at home, so it will be interesting to see how the team responds to things like this…

And this…

It’s a mean roadie for sure, but understand one final thing from this week’s list…

Next: MLS Week 10 in attendance

The midway point of the schedule is a better gauge for knowing what the team is, rather than seven matches short of the mark.

Not every player is healthy. Everyone is coming back from the international competitions (see: Carleton, Andrew). The team is still trying to find its identity within each other’s care.

It just takes time…

A Step Back: What Happened In The Bronx Stays In The Bronx.