After Atlanta United’s 2-0 loss to Nashville SC dropped them to 1-6-1 on the season, Tata Martino was asked about what his feelings were eight matches into his return to the team.
“Obviously, I’m not feeling good, but…I’m just totally focused on thinking how we can get out of this situation,” Martino said. “But of course, I feel anger and frustration.”
Anger and frustration are two appropriate words to describe how Atlanta United fans are feeling. Judging by the empty seats at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday night โ with respect to the Cardi B concert at State Farm Arena next door and the Atlanta Hawks’ playoff opener in New York happening at the same time โ apathy could be another.
A statistical indictment
How bad has it been for Atlanta United? Let’s rewind to May 24 and 28, 2025, when Atlanta United beat FC Cincinnati and Orlando City on successive nights at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Since then, Atlanta United has gone 2-15-9 in their last 26 MLS regular-season matches, the worst of any MLS team in that time period. Thatโs a remarkable 15 out of a possible 78 points (0.57 points per game).
Let’s go deeper. Atlanta’s record at the Benz against MLS teams since those two wins against Cincinnati and Orlando in 2025 is 1-5-6, with 17 goals for and 23 against (a -6 goal differential). They’ve averaged just 0.75 points per game at the Benz in those 12 games.
The numbers away from MBS are even more grim, where Atlanta is just 1-10-3 in MLS play. It has been outscored 26-5, with its -21 goal differential in that time span ranking second-worst to Sporting Kansas City’s -26. Here are a few more nuggets that illustrate Atlantaโs road struggles:
- Atlanta United hasnโt scored on the road since beating Nashville SC at GEODIS Park on August 30, a span of six consecutive away matches against MLS opponents
- They havenโt scored multiple goals on the road against an MLS opponent since March 22, 2025, a 2-2 draw at FC Cincinnati
- Out of a possible 42 road points, Atlanta has accumulated just six, or a PPG total of 0.42.
Our coverage of Atlanta United vs. Nashville SC
The Latte Lath problem
Miguel Almiron hasn’t made the impact Atlanta hoped he’d make when he came back to the Five Stripes in 2025, and things haven’t gotten off to a bright start after the return of his former coach, either. Alexey Miranchuk has shown marginal improvement but still struggles with inconsistency. Both players deserve a share of the blame for the current state of Atlanta United.
Then there’s Emmanuel Latte Lath. To say that he has underperformed in just about every metric since his debut with the club would be putting it lightly. Latte Lath opened his 2026 account against Philadelphia in March but hasn’t put a shot on target since. Zooming out further, since the start of 2025, he has recorded just 17 shots on target. His xG is 12.69, or an average of 0.30 per game. By comparison, Sam Surridge’s xG is about 30.95, or around 0.73 per game, in the same time span, which is more in line with what you’d expect for a player Atlanta spent $22 million to acquire.
The thinking was that Latte Lath needed an offseason of downtime and more service to help him become the striker Atlanta United wanted him to be. So far, that’s not been the case. When he receives service, he is wasteful and indecisive. When he doesn’t get service, he plays further back in an attempt to receive the ball. On Saturday, that tendency cost Atlanta directly. Latte Lath dropped deep to receive the ball, was dispossessed, and Nashville scored on the break.
Martino didn’t want to go in-depth about Latte Lath’s struggles, saying those discussions would remain in-house.
“When we’re going through a difficult moment like this, it’s tough for me to sit here and analyze individual players. Of course, you guys observe the games and see what you see. That’s something that I do address, but I address it with the players and not something that I’m going to address … with the media,” Martino said.
While that might be the case, with each passing match, Latte Lath’s name becomes more entrenched among the worst DP signings in MLS history.
Watch our Three Takeaways from Atlanta United vs. Nashville SC right now on YouTube. Click here.
Beyond what Tata Martino expected
Martino knew what he was walking into when he returned to Atlanta United. The team had been coming off the worst season in its history, and it was always going to take a while to get it fixed.
On Saturday, he conceded that Atlanta’s start was far worse than he had envisioned. In 2025, Atlanta was 2-3-3 in its first eight matches. It’s well behind that so far in 2026.
“Not even in my worst nightmares did I think we would have the start that we’ve had so far,” Martino said.
That’s not to say there haven’t been some promising things, though. Matรญas Galarza has been terrific. Cooper Sanchez has proven to be a reliable midfield option. Tรณmas Jacob appears to be a good signing as well. That said, the sum of the team isn’t good enough.
While Martino is confident his current group can improve, it’s clear that another wave of changes need to be made to upgrade the roster at critical spots. As far as what message he had for the fans, he was short to the point.
“Today, just to apologize to them,” he said.
Until things can improve significantly for Atlanta United, those words of apology, and anything else Martino says, will ring hollow.
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It would be one thing if we were horrible and it felt like the team was engendering unity, loyalty, or community to circle up and tolerate the era of poor performance together… but what we get is platitudes, media clips of 2018, 2026 season swag with a Columbus win on the box, no acknowledgment of reality.
Meanwhile, their social posts list the wrong days and times, and they run ads advertising suites with C & D-grade influencers… It’s so shortsighted. They take the support from their die-hard fans for granted and continue to raise prices while doing less for them each year. It really seems like no one over there in admin is working with a 5- or 10-year outlook; everyone is focused on the next 6-12 months and on meeting random short-term metrics.
I just moved to CO from the ATL. I’ve been a die-hard United fan since the team’s inception…but honestly….I’m not gonna miss this incohesive crap I’ve been subjected to for the last few years. Time to see how the Rapids play.
I donโt think anyone would blame you ๐ญ
At this point I would take AUFC paying a club 5M to take LL. There are some good, reasonable options out there at forward: Duลกan Vlahoviฤ and Tobias Lauritsen are both out of contract, Valencia might need to sell Hugo Duro, and Zian Flemming might not fit at Burnley but his style could work well in MLS.
Back in my late teens while living in Brazil I was playing soccer with some friends and neighbors, at 0-0 towards the end of the match I somehow I found myself 1v1 with the keeper–a look of pure terror on his face that his team might concede to the gringo. He had no need to worry, I shanked the shot badly. Afterwards a team mate congratulated me on how much skill to takes to miss a shot like that.
Anyway, that’s how I feel about ATL right now, a team that has a supreme knack for losing that seems to defy logic.
My friend, I hope your balls have long since recovered from being busted like that. Brutal.
Admittedly, I havent watched any games this year. But when I see a starting midfield of Muyumba, Fortune, and Cooper Sanchez, its just an automatic no from me.
They’ve actually not been awful. Fortune is a breath of fresh air. Cooper is clearly an up-and-coming talent and if we don’t sell him, will be important to our midfield long term. Muyumba is fine as long as he his enough up the pitch in the moments he loses possession – he has been exposed a lot in his weaknesses without having a competent CDM behind him to absorb the mistakes. He’s not a long term solution, but works for now in the right setup.
I didn’t see the 2nd goal last night, but the first one was a direct result of LL losing possession in our own half and we couldn’t scramble quickly enough to stuff up the middle. Up until that point, the midfield was reasonably solid, just not productive enough in the attack.
Its not like they dont have redeeming qualities, especially fortune.
I think other teams game-plan around taking our big name guys out of the game, because those 3 may be decent in the middle third of the field, but outside of being decent in possession at times they arent going to beat you.
But who knows. Personally, Im waiting until the team wins 3 in a row to give them another shot.
They are “serviceable”. However, since soccer games are generally won or lost in the midfield, your initial take is the right one.
Exactly. Fortune should be a rotation starter/sub. We should have another high end CM. And a Larentowicz type to help lock down games at the end when needed.
Im not upset that Sanchez is getting time, but that hes getting this much time just shows how little depth we have at the most important position.
Muyumba also has redeeming qualities but he needs to be played alongside top end talent that can bail him out.
Fortune has actually been a bright spot in midfield
hard to call him a bright spot when he has only played 2 matches this season
That’s how bleak the season has been. Galarza has been a nice addition. Fortune has looked like the only other guy with a clue since his inclusion in the starting lineup at USOC and then vs Nashville.
Definitely, Galarza has been great so far and I don’t doubt Fortune will improve as the season progresses.
Arguably the best get since Almada left.
I would like to know who scouted ELL and exactly what were they seeing.
Me too. It might have made sense if the plan was to get someone who could sprint and get onto the end of long/though balls, but that would have required a completely different strategy than we’ve implemented since he was brought on. Even Tata mentioned in his post-match press conference last night that we were making the field “too short” to take advantage of ELL’s strengths. Which begs the question: What is Tata telling them to do?
I believe his highlight reel was all breakaways/counterattacks when we signed him. And we don’t do that enough. Not that that would make much of a difference…
While I would’ve agreed with this idea before, my problem with it is that this year and probably last year as well, there have been multiple times it’s been a foot race for Lath to get on the end of a long ball, and he seems to consistently get beat to it or can’t manipulate it in a way that becomes productive. Like even what’s supposed to be his strengths haven’t been convincing.
When it’s a true 1v1 footrace, he seems to usually win. But I agree, once he gets to the ball, nothing particularly good happens.
I’ve decided Latte Lath is pretty much a clone of Cisneros from 2022.
Fire everyone in the FO. Expel Spector from soccer
Wait, you think the cardi b concert and Hawks have are the reason nobody is coming to these games?
Just wait until Wednesday.
We didn’t come down due to the Cardi B concert as we expected traffic to be an epic cluster. Plus the parking rates were jacked-up over normal (and just wait until the WC). However, if AUFC had given us a reason to show (better play) we probably would have gone.
My main issue with Tata is the fact he has been very inflexible. The year we won the MLS Cup, it seemed like there was a lot of flexibility in the starting line up and playing the best players possible. But now Tata seems so entrenched in his way that he is basically willing to go down with the ship just to keep playing “his guys” *cough* *cough* Baez *cough* *cough* Hoyos
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say I think his judgement in t these matters is better than that of all the commenters. Clearly he’s aware he has Hoyos on the squad.
Maybe I am mis-remembering but even in his first spell at the club there was lots of discussion about how Tata was inflexible. Especially in his line-ups. He gets an eleven and runs it out over and over unless injuries. That has always been a criticism of Tata, stubborn.
For all the criticism he has rightly earned to date, Hoyos had a pretty excellent game last night. As far as Baez, I don’t think he’s a game changer, but it’s not like he has a ton of depth to work from that’s starting quality and he works well with Miggy down the left.
I want to see Hoyos benched in favor of Hibbert and I’m not 100% convinced on Baez as a long term solution, but these are hardly grounds to call him inflexible.
To me it looks like there has been a fair amount of rotation of the lineup, probably by necessity more than Tata’s choice. There’s just nobody on the bench who is going to make a big difference. It’s “rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic”. Someone described this team last year as the Island of Misfit Toys, and it’s still apt. I presume (hope) the guys are playing the best they can, but we’ll continue to struggle, regardless of the coach, without a significant overhaul in the roster.
Absolutely
EXACTLY!
I remember him getting criticism first time around for being stuck in his ways on team selections. I remember an interview back then where he said he never wants to go match to match with more than 2 changes in a line up. Thatโs how he builds chemistry and cohesion.
Us open cup of course being a different tournament, so a different lineup of course. But I can see him doing the same theory now on his selection from mls matches. He picks his starters and then stays with them for the most part.
But to his own admission, this has been a nightmare situation on how we are staying off this season. So maybe heโll change things up eventually.