Atlanta United are off to one of the best starts in club history, but a recent defeat outside MLS — and some road issues — must be overcome.
Meanwhile, winning anywhere hasn’t been easy for Nashville SC of late.
Unbeaten in four straight matches, Atlanta eyes its second road win, while trying to keep Nashville winless for a fourth consecutive contest on Saturday afternoon.
Atlanta (5-1-3, 18 points) hasn’t played this well to open a season since recording 22 points in nine games during an MLS Cup-winning 2018 campaign. Giorgos Giakoumakis scored early and a Chicago Fire own goal at the 98:09 mark sent Atlanta to a 2-1 home victory last weekend.
Atlanta is 2-0-2 since a 6-1 loss at Columbus on March 25.
However, a stunning 2-1 midweek defeat to Memphis 901 in the US Open Cup was a potential red flag for Atlanta. The team has also conceded nine goals while going 0-1-2 on the road since opening with a 3-0 victory at Charlotte FC.
“We can’t get too high, can’t get too low,” Atlanta midfielder Tyler Wolff said. “We’re flying, doing well in the league, so we just have to keep going and learn from (the Open Cup defeat).”
It’s also uncertain if Giakoumakis (team-leading five goals) will be available due to a nagging hamstring issue. Meanwhile, keeper Quentin Westberg’s patella injury could also sideline him for this contest.
Meanwhile, Nashville (3-3-3, 12 points) has totaled four goals during its 1-3-2 stretch. It’s also 0-1-2 since winning 2-0 at Orlando City on April 1. Hany Mukhtar’s third goal gave Nashville an early 1-0 home lead against LAFC last weekend, but it conceded the equalizer just before the hour mark in the 1-1 result.
“We haven’t gotten anywhere close to our capabilities, (but) going forward, and we’re (still) in a competitive position,” Nashville coach Gary Smith said.
Mukhtar, the reigning MLS MVP, has recorded five goals and four assists in seven league matches versus Atlanta. After losing its initial two matchups with Atlanta, Nashville is 2-0-3 in the series.
Nashville made news this week by trading veteran forward CJ Sapong to Toronto FC for defender Lukas MacNaughton.
–Field Level Media
