Atlanta United are now unbeaten in four straight matches with a big 2-0 road win against Columbus. See what we learned from an important match up.
Atlanta United is continuing to win on the road, this time against a strong Eastern conference foe. With another three points, the Five Stripes are separating themselves from the rest of the conference and the league.
Atlanta won possession and maintained control of the pace of the match throughout. Columbus did waste a few valuable chances, but Atlanta was dominant nonetheless. Josef Martinez is continuing to score and supporters saw the return of a fan favorite player. After a difficult stretch of games, Atlanta is sitting right where they want to be.
Here are five things learned from Wednesday night’s win.
5. The 4-2-3-1 is back
Earlier this week I mentioned the return of the 4-2-3-1, which is the formation manager Tata Martino prefers to use. Martino deployed the formation for just the third time in MLS league play. It if refreshing to see Atlanta back in its usual formation, and the differences are obvious.
Atlanta possessed the ball for most of the match, which is something they don’t normally do this season. In the 3-5-2, the Five Stripes are content with sitting back and defending, then waiting for a mistake and counter attacking the opponent. In the 4-2-3-1, they possess the ball and look for open lanes to exploit in the opposition. Atlanta finished Wednesday night with 53% possession, which is an improvement over their 39% against NYCFC just a few days before.
As substitutions occurred, Atlanta did make their way back to a 3-5-2. However, a significant amount of the match featured the 4-2-3-1 and it is clear Martino is working his squad back into the formation. It didn’t happen on Wednesday night, but we should be seeing a combination of Josef Martinez, Miguel Almiron, Ezequiel Barco, and Hector Villalba on the pitch together in the near future.