Ronny Deila was the first person onto the pitch at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground Thursday. Of all the trainings I’ve watched so far this season, today was the first time he’s been out the earliest. He walked over to the equipment shed and began laying out cones for practice. A humble move for a head coach who could’ve easily delegated the task to an assistant.
Deila’s leadership style has always been about creating a familial environment, and it’s clear he doesn’t want anyone to think he’s above the work. That’s the way he builds trust in his squad and encourages his players to trust each other every single training.
Trust is exactly what Atlanta United needs right about now. Trust in their abilities, trust in each other, trust in their preparation. The club stands on the precipice of five homes games in six matches, all but one of those opponents are in the Eastern Conference. It’s a huge opportunity to put the Charlotte loss out of mind and continue the campaign for a top four finish.
They’ll start with New York Red Bulls at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 8.
“Home game, it really doesn't matter who you’re playing, first place or last place,” Saba Lobjanidze said after training Thursday. “We have to go for three points.”
Reinforcements inbound
Atlanta United’s full-strength squad still hasn’t seen the pitch yet this season, but it’s looking like that’s closer to happening in the coming weeks. Fullbacks Pedro Amador and Brooks Lennon are back in training and will be available in the coming weeks, according to Deila. Those two should be a huge boost to a position where, in their absence, a center back in Luis Abram had to fill in against Charlotte.
Homegrowns Matt Edwards and Dominik Chong Qui built up some trust themselves while filling in at fullback. They’ll not only push Amador and Lennon in training to get the best out of them but will also be useful off the bench to keep the energy up.
“We’ll have more width in the squad,” Deila said. “They also often get more tired because they run more, same with the wingers. To have double up in these two positions is key to keep attacking and keep having good width in our game.”
Mateusz Klich returned to training after flu-like symptoms sidelined him for the Charlotte game. Deila said he might be able to play Saturday.
The more these guys share the pitch together getting real gametime, the more we’ll truly see what peaks this Atlanta United side can reach this season. Still, no matter what injuries they face, the start of the season is proof they have plenty of depth to compete.
Where you at?
Chemistry takes time, and it’s also not something that’s entirely linear. As Atlanta United faces different opponents with different set ups, they’ll be tasked with adjusting to them quicker and quicker each week.
It’s clear that getting the ball into the box is a point of emphasis for this team. During training Thursday, players did drills that required them to make runs and play or receive crosses into the box and beat the keeper with a finish. The group who was resting walked back in the path of play, forcing the group going through the drill to move fluidly and get creative.
Doing it on the counter matters, too. The sheer speed in this attacking unit makes any long ball dangerous, especially when defenses don’t have numbers back. The next step is what the person who receives that ball does to get it into a dangerous area. Who’s going to be where? Should I cut it inside or go to the sideline? That collective muscle memory will make attacking seem like second nature, but it’s never going to be instantaneous.
“It’s a new team, it’s normal,” Saba said. “There [are] some mistakes, there’s some good things. We’re all pros and we’re all learning.”
For Saba, playing on the left side of the attack is a bit of a change of pace from last season where he was more often on the right. He said he’s still improving in his understanding of when to cut inside and how he can be effective at left wing.
Deila trusts he’ll be firing on all cylinders very soon.
“His eagerness to succeed is unbelievably big,” Deila said. “And as I said to him, ‘You can't play the game three times before it's going to happen.’ You have to focus on what you need to do … He's trained so well this year, so I think it's just a matter of time before the whole thing is coming.”
‘Deal with changes’
Anyone who’s ever played or watched soccer understands the feeling of going down 1-0. It’s frustration first, but there’s also some doubt that creeps in. Where did things go wrong? What broke down? What needs to change? These questions are important to ask after the fact, but in the heat of the moment, it’s oftentimes best to stick to your prep, stick to what was working.
Atlanta United’s second half drop-offs are something Deila thinks comes down to trust. He made it clear he wants his team to stay focused on the simple things and maintaining level heads in the face of adversity.
“It's about what we do when we go 1-0 down,” he said. “We have to keep on doing the same things, dealing with the emotions that we get. Don't just start to do absolutely everything different from what we did before, because it was working the whole first half.”
In a league like MLS, where tactics vary greatly team to team, the preparation is all the more important. Red Bulls will play open and won’t just be hoarding possession. They lost the possession battle last time out against Nashville but won 2-0.
“It's a totally different game from the other games, and that's what's interesting,” Deila said. “Every game, the opponents have their own style, so we know what we have to do.”
So far, Atlanta United have made it clear that they’re preparing well. The two first halves have been affirmative and active on both ends of the pitch. It’s when things start changing that the 5-Stripes need to double down.
“This is what I talk about in doing things simple,” Deila said. “We’ll be disciplined and deal with changes and things that happen inside the game.”
