ATLANTA UNITED HAS WON A SOCCER GAME!!! I REPEAT, ATLANTA UNITED HAS WON A SOCCER GAME!!!
Supporters’ Shield holders, Philadelphia Union, came to town in Matchday 3 looking to get right against an Atlanta United side that also lost its first three games of the season, but left empty-handed after the Five Stripes charged to a 3-1 win with some beautiful attacking play. Tata ball is BACK, baby!!
No driver’s license needed to check out my risers and fallers column, so let’s just dive into this week’s picks!
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Risers
Miguel Almirón
If this match created a hint of nostalgia, it’s because of Miguel Almirón, who delivered a vintage performance including assists on all three goals. After grabbing his 38th assist all-time in the MLS Regular Season, the Paraguayan passed Brooks Lennon to become the club’s top assister in league play.
But he’s in this column for more than just his contribution to the scoreline. He looked like the Miggy of old: creative, mobile and a playmaker in every sense of the word. He became the spark that this team has been missing in transition for a while, helping the team push into the attacking third with a whopping 193m total carrying distance and providing six key passes.
In particular, I thought Almirón’s combination play with Matías Galarza and Elías Báez down the left side was very good. It was Báez who killed the ball and put it into Miggy’s path on the first goal and Galarza helped him build up on the second goal with a neat pass-and-go sequence. These three have developed a surprising amount of chemistry in a short period of time, which I think will be key for this team to be at its best going forward.
On another note, I think Miggy has found his voice as a leader within the squad. On the Philadelphia penalty kick call in the second half, he was livid at the referee, something that I’m not used to seeing from him, as usually one of the quieter players in the squad. You can also see him start to communicate more with some of the players around him and try to organize the team.
Alexey Miranchuk
Be honest, how many of you had Alexey Miranchuk being Atlanta United’s top goalscorer through four games? I didn’t.
It’s even more surprising considering he was a sub in the first two games and has only played 215 minutes. The Russian international has three goals in his last two games, and may be finding his best form yet under Tata Martino.
What most stands out to me from his play is that he’s getting forward a lot more than we’ve seen in the past. Last season, Miranchuk tended to play much deeper and not venture into the box as much, preferring to stay on the edge of the box where he activates his Finesse Shot+ playstyle and nails a shot into the top corner. Now, he’s actually making the right runs to get into positions from where he can take high-percentage shots. Just look at his movement here to get an easy finish against Philadelphia.
Martino has spoken about how he wants the three designated players to be involved in both chance creation and finishing, and this goal was a perfect example of that versatility. Miranchuk, the attacking midfielder who is the on-paper chance creator, bursts forward to finish the move while Emmanuel Latte Lath, the No. 9, initiates the move with patience and a good pass (full disclosure, if I could add a fourth riser, it would be Latte Lath).
I remember being very impressed with Miranchuk’s performance as a striker in the club’s 4-0 preseason win over Lexington SC, so I’m not surprised that he’s adjusting well to his new role under Tata Martino. The question now is whether he can sustain that.
Tomás Jacob
Atlanta’s second goal, scored by Tomás Jacob, was my favorite of the three for several reasons. First, he’s just a very likable guy. His energy and passion on the field have been refreshing to see. Second, the build-up to the goal was just… *chef”s kiss*. Third, Jacob actually made that run to the back post! No one has made that run in a long time, which is why many similar chances were wasted in recent seasons.
Also, I don’t know about you, but Jacob reminded me so much of Franco Escobar on this goal. With how far forward he was, the run and the finish.
I initially had my doubts about Jacob at right back, but this match showed that he’s very capable at the position. He created two big chances and had two shots (including the goal), showing his willingness to get forward while also holding things down defensively, posting nine defensive contributions and winning 11 of his 15 duels.
It’s not often that we have a multi-positional player who truly convinces me that he’s capable of playing each position well, but Jacob has looked good as a No. 6 and as a right back. We also have yet to see him as a center back or a winger, positions he can also play.
Fallers
Lucas Hoyos
When I published my column last week, I realized I had somehow gone three weeks without naming Lucas Hoyos as a faller. Today, we are rectifying this terrible oversight.
Besides having multiple moments in each game that make me go “LUCAS WHAT THE HECK??!!” Hoyos has the hilarious stat of being the WORST GOALKEEPER in American Soccer Analysis’ G+ database this season. Keep in mind that FC Cincinnati’s Roman Celentano and Minnesota United’s Drake Callender just conceded six goals each against the New England Revolution and Vancouver Whitecaps, respectively.
Yeah, it’s bad, guys.
While Atlanta United deserves credit for a very solid performance, the team was also extremely lucky not to concede more than that one goal. The Union posted 14 shots, but only put three of them on target. There’s also the Milan Iloski penalty kick that hit the post in the first half. In fact, Philly has the WORST SHOT EFFICIENCY in the league (-5.51 xG Eff), which makes total sense if you go back and look at some of the chances they flubbed.
So Hoyos didn’t face many high-percentage chances, which explains how the team was able to get away so easily despite a poor performance from the Argentine goalkeeper. He only made two saves in this match. TWO!! And one of them was on a weak shot from like 30 yards out. A cardboard cutout of Bobby Shuttleworth could probably perform as well as Hoyos did.
But hey, at least his distribution is amazing!
Oh. Okay then. Well, it’s too bad we don’t have a young goalkeeper who had a 70.2 save percentage in 2025…
Elías Báez
I had to be much more selective with my fallers in this match because so many players had solid performances, which is why Elías Báez is in this category, despite having a second assist on the team’s first goal.
While the 21-year-old left back had some good moments going forward, including an overlapping run that resulted in a shot on target, I thought he was rather lacking on defense. His positioning has caused problems for Atlanta’s backline at times, as he tends to push forward or tuck in too much and leave gaps at the back. This directly led to one of the goals in the home opener against Real Salt Lake and caused plenty of problems for the team against Philly, too.
Then there’s the matter of giving up the penalty kick just before halftime with a careless shove to Bruno Damiani’s head.
I’m not too worried about Báez. I think his ceiling is high enough that he’s going to be fine in the long run, and, with Tata developing him, I’m even more encouraged about his potential.
Saba Lobjanidze
I don’t like to include players who only played a few minutes, but honestly, I wasn’t sure who else to include.
However, I do feel sufficient reason to have Saba as a faller. In 19 minutes (12 regulation plus 7 stoppage), he had just three touches and one shot that went over the bar. That’s it. He didn’t do anything else of value. When a player is on a nearly million-dollar TAM deal, you expect some sort of contribution. You don’t expect him to be relegated to the bench.
At 31, Saba’s effectiveness as a winger is only going to decrease as he gets further and further from his prime years. For me, he’s a top candidate for one of the team’s two buyouts this year.
What do you think of my picks? Let me know in the comments and drop your risers and fallers for this game, too!
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Hoyos still starting is inexplicable. I thought Hibbert was shaky on the ball when he first took over from Guz last year, but by the end of the season, I no longer worried about him. There’s no way he’s worse than Hoyos unless he’s injured. Hoyos is out there literally creating chances for the opposing team.
But Miggy looked like what I’d hoped to see last year. And to be fair, it seemed like he was trying to be that guy and no one else knew how to play with him.
The only reason I’m surprised Miranchuk is the leading scorer is because he barely played the first two games. He was our second-leading scorer last season and always seemed to score goals that mattered. Of course he’d be better in a system that gave him more help.
Risers:
–Counter attack
–Midfield coupling
–CB’s
Fallers:
–Goalkeeping
–FB connections
–First touches
I would throw muyumba into the risers column too. Imo he’s playing his best football since joining the team. Not that he’s a world beater all of a sudden, but trotting out solid performances and seems to very much more comfortable in a tata organized team.
hoyos is worse than Guz as a shot blocker, slightly better but still bad playing out if the back, and seemingly incapable of organizing his back line (something guz excelled at). Playing him is the biggest head scratcher of the tata era so far.
Agreed on both points. Muyumba has been mostly good. I still like him better as an 8 than a 6, but he definitely looks better than the past couple of years. Hoyos is a liability, and I’m honestly not sure what it would take to get Tata to drop him. He backs him a lot.
I also agree that Baez is fine offensively, but he has had a few defensive miscues that I don’t think Amador would have made. I am not against Baez playing but if we want Atlanta to go far this season, I think Amador needs to get more first team rep.
For the love of God, please play Hibbert.
This
Miggy, latte, and Alexey were what we hoped they would be last match. That goal from latte was what we brought him here for. Miggy was amazing at creation, and dang it, Alexey just keeps finding ways to score. I felt the same on Jacob’s goal, reminded me of Franco.
Great article as usual!
Thanks, Jordan! I think it’s also good timing that it’s coming in the middle of a homestand. If they can continue the momentum over the next two games, that confidence can go far.