Atlanta United Vs Columbus Crew: 5 key players to watch – The cornerstone center-back

Atlanta United return to MLS action this weekend with a game against Columbus Crew. See which 5 players are key to watch in this Eastern Conference clash.

Atlanta United return to MLS league play following the March international break with a trip to the Columbus Crew in Week 5. This recent break saw six first-team players get playing time with their respective international squads. Most of these players play a significant role for the first team and how they fared internationally may affect this weekend’s game.

• Pity Martinez started for Argentina in their friendly against Venezuela. Pity played the entire first half but was subbed off during the break. After the match, reports came out that he injured his hamstring and returned to Atlanta to receive treatment. No official word has come from Atlanta on the injury.
• Josef Martinez subbed on for Venezuela in the second half and scored from the penalty spot to boost Venezuela’s lead and eventually win 3-1. It was his first goal with Venezuela since joining Atlanta United in 2017.
• Hector Villalba didn’t see the field during Paraguay’s first friendly but did start the second one against Mexico and former Atlanta boss Tata Martino. Villalba played 83 minutes against Mexico.
• Ezequiel Barco saw playing time with the U20 Argentina national team. Barco shot on goal in the team’s first friendly against Japan but it was registered as an own goal.
• Andrew Carleton played in both of the USMNT U20 friendlies this weekend. He nearly scored from a free kick in a 2-2 draw against France and the Homegrown did find the back of the net against Japan in the team’s second friendly, a 2-1 win.
• Miles Robinson subbed on for the USMNT U23 national team in the second half against Egypt and sported the captain’s armband for that second half. He started the team’s second game against the Netherlands, which resulted in a 0-0 draw.

With that quick international recap out of the way, here are five players to watch during this Saturday’s match in Columbus.

5. Josef Martinez

It’s been a slow start offensively for the Five Stripes this season. The team scored only two goals in the first three matches, compared to 11 in the first three matches of 2017 and four in the first three matches of 2018. Of course, this season last year’s record goalscorer Josef Martinez scored the team’s first of those two goals and also scored three goals in CCL play.

As noted in the recap above, Martinez also scored with Venezuela. Hopefully, his scoring form can continue and the Venezuelan attacker can score in Columbus. Martinez is no stranger to scoring against Columbus. In six appearances against the Crew, he has three goals and an assist.

Goals have been hard to come by in Frank de Boer’s new system, however. The players need time to adapt, and for those who didn’t play with their national team over the break, they got some much needed time with the coaching staff. Unfortunately, Martinez is not one of those players. On the bight side, the league MVP is a smart player and seems to be able to score no matter the system or team he plays with. Ideally, he can impact this weekend’s game in the same way he usually does.