Emmanuel Latte Lath. His name was primed for frothy chants and specially crafted calls when the goals arrived. And when Latte Lath scored not just once but twice in his debut Saturday night, Mike Conti delivered on the broadcast:
“It’s a double latte!” he exclaimed after Latte Lath’s second go-ahead goal of the night.
The image of a smooth, freshly-steamed coffee describes what a delectable treat it was seeing Latte Lath in his first match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. His career in Atlanta started on a positive note February 22 when the forward scored in the 41st and 63rd minutes, becoming the first player ever for the club to secure a brace in his debut.
The effort evoked another comparison (not coffee-related), this time from his head coach:
“He’s so quick, and his change of direction is very good. His finishing, left foot, right foot, he can jump like Air Jordan,” Ronny Deila said.
Coming into the match, it wasn’t entirely 100 percent whether Latte Lath would start or play a full 90 minutes. There was a good chance he’d play, but he'd only just signed with the club in early February. It was a fast turnaround for the player coming out of Middlesbrough FC of the Championship in England.
He ended up being subbed off in the 90th minute, before the 10-minute stoppage time, essentially hitting both those marks.
“It was my personal goal to score in the first game, so I’m really, really happy,” Latte Lath said.
As his head coach stated, Latte Lath’s two goals on the night arrived different ways. After Atlanta United created some chances in the opening minutes, the match remained scoreless late into the first half.
The breakthrough came from a corner kick served by Saba Lobjanidze. Latte Lath headed the ball into the goal for the finish.
“I jump,” Latte Lath put it simply when asked after the match to describe the goal.
Goal No. 2 for Latte Lath arrived in the second half. With the match against CF Montréal tied 1-1, Atlanta United was looking again for go-ahead goal. Starting fullback Ronald Hernández played a cross that Miguel Almirón twisted to head on frame. Montréal’s keeper Jonathan Sirois knocked it down, but the ball fell to the feet of Atlanta United right in front of goal.
Latte Lath slotted it home.
“When he’s switched on and he has legs, he can terrorize a defense. That’s for sure,” Deila said.
The forward signed as a designated player on February 4, making his introduction to Atlanta on the pitch just a little over two weeks later. He was the final designated player added to Atlanta United, closing out a busy offseason for the club.
Opening at home and seeing the new acquisitions like Latte Lath was a strong, exciting way to kick off 2025 – and a good reason why Atlanta United hosted the third-largest crowd in the world Saturday night. Designated players Alexey Miranchuk, Miguel Almirón, Latte Lath – all three made the starting XI Saturday, which made all the difference for Deila to earn three points in his first match as Atlanta United head coach:
“All three DPs were good – very, very good things,” he said. “The attitude I love most. They really want it and they work hard. They’re humble. They’re good teammates that we need to lift our group and our team now to get better.”
