Here we are again. Another 3-1 loss at home for the Five Stripes, another round of subpar player ratings pretty much across the board. That’s not much of a spoiler at this point, either. Unfortunately, we don’t rate per half, otherwise more credit could be given to a rather strong first half performance defensively from this squad, but things got out of hand quickly in the second half thanks to some guy named Messi, who added two goals to Berterame’s end of the half opener. Fafa Picault pulled back a penalty to keep things relatively close-ish.
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 – 4.00 ; Community rating – 3.91
Made two saves, one being a Messi free kick towards the end of the first half, but couldn’t survive the second half onslaught from the visitors.
ElÃas Báez – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 3.82
Baez couldn’t contribute much here, and left a fair amount to be desired as far as crosses go. Still fairly accurate on his regular passes with a 92% completion rate, and registered two chances created.
J̼nior Alonso РStaff rating Р3.0 ; Community rating Р3.27
When a starting center back has a low number of defensive actions, that can either be really good, or really bad. This was the latter. Alonso did receive some global attention… for getting absolutely cooked on Messi’s second goal.
Paulo Diaz – Staff rating – 3.5 ; Community rating – 3.45
A bit more productive defensively than his partner, Diaz had an equal lowlight on the first Miami goal, getting flung off of the ball by Luis Suarez before the attacker chipped a cross to Berterame for an easy slam dunk goal.
Tomas Jacob – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 3.91
Was made to look silly on Miami’s second goal, Messi’s first. Like his counterpart Baez, Jacob had a decent pass completion percentage (92%) and registered two chances created, but wasn’t much of a factor in the match, plus earned a yellow card for a rough tackle.
Mauricio Amaro – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 3.64
Now eight matches in to his time with Atlanta United, Amaro hasn’t seemed to settle into his defensive midfield role with this squad. His positioning hasn’t been there, which was apparent in this match, and he’s been more of a game chaser than influencer. Amaro is still developing in his career, but left a lot to be desired in this match.
Tristan Muyumba – Staff rating – 3.50 ; Community rating – 3.82
Muyumba too was ineffective in midfield, garnering 33 touches, and his costly turnover led to Messi’s second of the night. His evening was over at the hour mark as he was replaced by Alzate.
Giuliano Galoppo – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 4.27
Typically prone to getting involved in the attack, Galoppo was quieter in this match, taking two shots, neither of which found their way toward goal. Galoppo also found himself with just 33 touches as Atlanta often struggled to keep possession for any extended amount of time.
Alexey Miranchuk – Staff rating – 5.50 ; Community rating – 3.36
Miranchuk was an effective in Atlanta’s pressing situations, able to win the ball off of Miami’s defenders on multiple occasions. After winning the ball, though, he (and the team as a whole) were unable to create quality chances. His three total chances created led the team, but none of his three shots ended up on target.
Miguel Almiron – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 4.09
Miggy reeeally should have equalized in the 52nd minute, or at least led to the equalizer. Instead, he’s denied by Dayne St. Clair on Atlanta’s most clear-cut chance from open play. Miggy was able to add a bit on the ball, and managed to win a few corners, but it’s the missed chance that will stand out the most.
Breel Embolo – Staff rating – 4.50 ; Community rating – 4.36
Both of Embolo’s shot attempts came early on in the match, his first effort blocked and rebound attempt wide. He nearly earned an assist on the chance for Miggy saved by St. Clair, but was ultimately kept at bay by Miami.
Steven Alzate (SUB 61′) – Staff rating – 3.50 ; Community rating – 3.00
Alzate came on as the team went down 3-0, and didn’t do much in the way of changing the course of the match. A decent passer of the ball in midfield, he at least exceeded Muyumba’s touch count in half as much time. Otherwise, a non-factor when the team could’ve use a shfit.
Cooper Sanchez (SUB 81′) – Staff rating – 4.25 ; Community rating – 4.44
Completed nine of his ten passes, and able to register a chance created in the tail end of the match. It wasn’t nothing, but not a lot of time to contribute.
Matt Edwards (SUB 82′) – Staff rating – 5.00 ; Community rating – 4.56
On with little time as Atlanta fought from three goals down, Edwards did let off a strike from distance that looked destined for the net until it hit the post.
Fafa Picault (SUB 82′) – Staff rating – 7.00 ; Community rating – 6.78
Picault pretty much singlehandedly won and converted the penalty against his former side, being at least one of the subsitutes to really provide a spark in the match. Ultimately too little too late for the team as a whole, but good to see production in very limited minutes.
Tata Martino – Staff rating – 4.00 ; Community rating – 2.82
Tata praised his side for the first half, but the match then got away from them quickly, and ended in an unfortunately familiar way for the parts of the home crowd there to watch the home team. Three of the four subs came in the final ten minutes of regulation, with the match well decided at that point, leaving just Steven Alzate as his main change in personnel. With playoff lives now mathematically on the line, will Tata seek further lineup changes for the final four remaining matches?