After nearly a month and a half, Atlanta United is back to playing soccer in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Did you miss it? Did you… not?
When the Five Stripes welcome Nashville SC tonight, it will be the first MLS regular season match played in the Benz since July 20th. Seems like a lifetime ago that Stian Gregersen pulled off a brace of headers to defeat the reigning MLS Cup Champion Columbus Crew. In the meantime since then, Atlanta flamed out of the Leagues Cup, had a mini second preseason, added a new Designated Player in Alexey Miranchuk, and took a couple of road trips across the country to LA (or Carson, more specifically) and up the road in Charlotte. Marco Reus and Riqui Puig may have spoiled that first one, but Jay Fortune pulled through in the second with a fantastically struck goal to give Atlanta a victory coming in to what feels like a home re-opening following a bye week.
It’ll be the formal introduction of Alexey Miranchuk to the Five Stripe faithful, who are eager to see up close what their new DP 10 can do. It’s the final meeting of the season against local rivals from Tennessee, sure to draw more fans both home and away. It’s the beginning of the home stretch of the regular season schedule, with Atlanta United still on the playoff bubble, 10th in a tightly packed Eastern Conference race for the final playoff spots.
Nashville SC, meanwhile, is sat at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. They too fired their head coach during the season, but found a quick replacement in former USMNT assistant coach BJ Callaghan. Nashville have dropped both of their post-Leagues Cup matches by a combined scoreline of 0-5, and haven’t won a match since June. Will Atlanta be able to prolong their poor form and continue building momentum into Wednesday’s clash with Inter Miami?
Kickoff from the Benz is set for your typical 7:40 PM ET start, with streaming coming from Apple TV with a subscription to MLS Season Pass. Radio coverage is provided in English on 92.9 The Game and in Spanish on La Mejor.
Before then, move on down to the match thread in the comments below to discuss the pre, during, and post-match happenings as Atlanta United returns home.
Atlanta United’s Lineup:
Nashville SC’s Lineup:
How to Watch:
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Kickoff Time: Saturday, September 14th; 7:40 PM ET
Available TV/Streaming: Apple TV (with MLS Season Pass Subscription)
Available Radio: 92.9 The Game, La Mejor 1600/1460/1130 AM
This thread will be your match thread. We don’t have many rules here. We just ask that you don’t insult each other personally and treat each other with respect. Debates can get heated and that’s fine, but name-calling and petty insults will get you banned. If you see a comment that you feel is out of line, please report it and it will be dealt with.
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We are now the “get-well” team for the rest of the MLS.
a 2 v 5 break results in a goal that tells you all you need to know
At that point, take the damn yellow and move on. Nobody on this team seems to be willing to take the card on a break, and it has absolutely killed us time and time again.
f off Mukhtar
DO SOMETHING ELSE LENNON
Sub out Lennon and Amadour and put in a trash can and a pile of dog crap because they can’t be any worse
Geez guys ( at least take notes on how to cross )
Lennon almost got a hockey assist for Nashville.
Need to figure out Amador’s side better, he’s getting overrun and then the runs in the box for the cross are always good. Meanwhile, Someone tell Lennon to actually drive in, force the defense to do something other than sit in the box and wait.
Do we know how to do anything other than hopeless crosses?
No
Geez guys
I’m also looking around the stadium and chuckling at all of the “sell-out” marketing that took place… place is empty
Stadium board says ATL vs Visitors: honest mistake or expert trolling?
First home game in a while brings a good level of excitement, and then I remember who our starting striker is… sigh
I hate to say it. Like genuinely I HATE, to say it… But, this is a winnable game…
As much as I hate the expression, this is actually a “must win” game in my mind
Definitely ready to see Miranchuk bedded with his teammates and making a goal contribution or two. That would be the perfect ‘welcome to Atlanta’ at the Benz.