Atlanta United: South Americans key for CCL run
By Drew Hubbard
Atlanta United posseses some of the best South Americans in MLS. With a difficult CCL run approaching, they will be key for any title hopes.
After an extended playoff run that saw Atlanta United take home the 2018 MLS Cup, the Five Stripes must enjoy a quick offseason in preparation for their first-ever run at the CONCACAF Champions League when they travel to face off against Costa Rican side Herediano on February 21.
The competition already forces teams to bring out the best in themselves as the tournament is filled with the best teams and players this continent has to offer. Along with world-class talent on the pitch, the fans and atmosphere will be some of the best in the world to help spur their team’s on to the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.
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Fans in Major League Soccer have shown up throughout the league to create atmospheres like no other, whether it be record-setting crowds in Atlanta or the historic Timber’s Army in Providence Park. However, making the trip outside of MLS opens up a whole new category of fans, one that teams must be prepared for if they want any chance of taking home the silverware.
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And fortunately for the Five Stripe faithful, their team is more than prepared for any atmosphere the world has to offer.
Arthur Blank’s team is brilliantly composed of some MLS veterans along with young exciting South Americans that all played a vital role in their title-winning season. Players like Michael Parkhurst and Jeff Larentowitz took these young stars under their wing and helped show what soccer in America is really like. But with trips to hostile atmospheres like Monterrey and Tigres possible, the tables will be turned and the young stars will be forced to lead the Five Stripes to victory.
Players like Hector “Tito” Villalba arrived in Atlanta after playing in one of the world’s most intense competitions, the Copa Libertadores to crown the best team in South America. Not only did the Paraguayan international compete, he excelled by helping his lifelong club San Lorenzo take home the prestigious crown in 2014.
Although Villalba is the only player for the Five Stripes to take home the Copa Libertadores, the multiple other South Americans at the club know more than enough about playing in some of the most hostile atmospheres in Argentine Primera División.
Players like Ezequiel Barco, Franco Escobar, Leandro Gonzalez Pirez, and rumored Atlanta transfer Pity Martinez, have all endured some of the world’s fiercest fanbases across South America and will bring more than enough experience to help Atlanta United break down the Champions League wall that has been barring MLS for so long.
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The CONCACAF Champions League will prove to be Atlanta’s best challenge yet, with world-class players, teams, and fanbases all competing for the right to be North America’s best club. And with a squad filled with talented and experienced South Americans, the Five Stripes are more than prepared to take home the trophy.