Here we are again after another home loss to a rival, this time a 3-2 defeat against Orlando City. Antoine Griezmann and Martin Ojeda proved to be too much for Atlanta United to handle, and despite a promising start for the Five Stripes, the Lions dominated the majority of the match and left Atlanta empty handed by the end of the night.
Here are the ratings, starting with mine followed by the average rating from our community player ratings form. As a reminder, here’s a look at the rating scale:
- 10 – world-class performance
- 9 – elite performance
- 6 – average
- 5 – slightly below average
- 3 – well below average
- 1 – poor in every level
Lucas Hoyos – Staff rating – 7.0 ; Community rating – 7.00
It could’ve been much worse if not for a few big stops from Hoyos between the sticks. Four saves on the night, and you can’t really put the blame on him for Orlando’s goals. Clearly Atlanta’s best performing player in this one.
Elías Báez – Staff rating – 5.0 ; Community rating – 4.04
Despite being an active contributor in posession, Báez had difficulty tracking back and couldn’t hold up to Orlando’s advances down the flank. Two chances created and a shot of his own offered some value on a rough night, and almost had a goal if not for an impressive goal line clearance.
Júnior Alonso – Staff rating – 4.0 ; Community rating – 4.73
Not a great showing in Alonso’s ninth match in an Atlanta shirt. Tasked along with fellow centerback Paulo Díaz to defend Griezmann, Alonso couldn’t keep up with the French star, or most any other Orlando attacker as he went without a single tackle, block, or interception all night.
Paulo Díaz – Staff rating – 5.0 ; Community rating – 4.38
Díaz was the much more active center back for Atlanta, racking up 10 defensive contributions against a seemingly relentless Orlando attack for most of the match, but still couldn’t keep up with his opposition’s runs in behind. He did manage to set up Embolo early on in the match on a set piece, heading a cross in front of goal for the touch to create an own goal which opened the scoring.
Tomás Jacob – Staff rating – 4.5 ; Community rating – 5.04
Got burned multiple times on Atlanta’s right side, and picked up a yellow card. Jacob bring much glory to himself in this one, and couldn’t make major inroads in the attack.
Mauricio Amaro – Staff rating – 6.0 ; Community rating – 4.92
Amaro’s first start and home debut saw him play a couple different roles, and seemed to still be adjusting to his new environment. Still, it wasn’t too bad of a performance from the young Uruguayan, who set up Enea Mihaj on a cross for Atlanta’s last consolation goal.
Tristan Muyumba – Staff rating – 5.5 ; Community rating – 4.96
Not much to report on from Muyumba, who played 64 minutes without much attention either way.
Jay Fortune – Staff rating – 5.0 ; Community rating – 4.50
Getting back up to speed from an injury, Fortune was limited in minutes to playing only the first half. With Atlanta dealing with multiple other missing midfielders, it’s likely Fortune otherwise wouldn’t have played as many minutes as he did. Still, it’s hard to judge his quiet outing in context.
Alexey Miranchuk – Staff rating – 5.5 ; Community rating – 3.73
Alexey set up the opening goal with a nifty turn and chipped pass to the far post on a corner in the sixth minute… and then wasn’t seen much afterward. That could be a result of Orlando’s dominance in possession, but as we’ve seen before, not the impact you’d want from a Designated Player, as shown from a low community rating.
Miguel Almiron – Staff rating – 5.0 ; Community rating – 4.73
Miggy worked his way into the attacking third when he could, but wasn’t able to create the way anyone on Atlanta’s side would’ve wanted. Almiron combined with Amaro prior to Atlanta finding the late second goal, but not a game changing performance from the DP.
Breel Embolo – Staff rating – 6.5 ; Community rating – 5.96
Embolo looked to have scored his second goal for his new club in as many games before his sixth minute opener was changed to an own goal. It wasn’t the prettiest of finishes, but it did wind up in the back of the net. Embolo forced one other shot on target, but couldn’t find any clear cut chances in the match.
Adrian Gill (SUB 45′) – Staff rating – 5.5 ; Community rating – 6.21
Gill had a longer run out this time and had a decent half in the defensive midfield. Two tackles, two interceptions, and three recoveries was serviceable, but not impactful enough as Orlando carved Atlanta twice in the second half. Still, Adrian has the second highest of the community ratings here, and highest of field players.
Luke Brennan (SUB 64′) – Staff rating – 4.5 ; Community rating – 4.79
Brennan created one chance, and offered another two unchallenging shots in his 30 minute shift.
Enea Mihaj (SUB 78′) – Staff rating – 6.0 ; Community rating – 5.17
Brought on after the damage had been done, Mihaj did offer a late consolation for Atlanta with a 97th minute header toward goal that was deflected by Crepeau and officially ruled an own goal.
Sergio Santos (SUB 78′) – Staff rating – 4.0 ; Community rating – 3.80
Entering as fresh legs in place of Embolo, Santos was a notable step down in this one and failed to make solid contact on a couple shooting opportunities.
Fafa Picault (SUB 79′) – Staff rating – 4.5 ; Community rating – 4.68
Picault entered for Miranchuk as Atlanta’s final sub, and gathered seven total touches in his eleven minutes plus stoppage. No shots, nothing really created in his short time out.
Tata Martino – Staff rating – 5.0 ; Community rating – 3.58
I, like most, was excited to see the lineup rolled out by Tata for this one when it dropped. Things even seemed to be living up to the billing after the first fifteen minutes. However, those same weaknesses in the squad showed up once again, with no answers to be found on the pitch as the match slipped away from them. Hopefully, as more players become available, Tata will have more to work with from the bench. For now, there’s not much, but a very low community rating from a rivalry defeat isn’t surprising.