ATHENS, Ga. - It was a sea of red and black in the sold-out stands at Turner Soccer Complex, embedding naturally with the colors of the stately “G” surrounding the soccer field and rooted in the city of Athens, Ga.
Atlanta United took over Athens on Sunday as the team kicked off the second if its preseason friendlies, the first outside of Atlanta. The scrimmage, played like a full match with two 45-minute halves, took place at the University of Georgia soccer field, just a few miles from campus on Milledge Ave.
Atlanta United won the scrimmage 4-0. The scoring started early with midfielder Tyler Wolff putting away a header on a cross from forward Luiz Araújo in the second minute. Then, nearly a mirror image of the first goal, defender Andrew Gutman made a left-footed cross that Araújo sent to the opposite corner of the net with his head.
Not a minute later, defender George Campbell rebounded a bouncing ball to give Atlanta United a 3-0 lead 10 minutes into the match.
The early scoring was indicative of the attacking concepts head coach Gonzalo Pineda has been working into the team’s preseason training, primarily pressing high and not letting the opponent have a lot of time with the ball.
“We tried to steal the ball as soon as possible just to start our position on the attack and then try to see if we can create chances as soon as possible,” Pineda said.
Atlanta United’s head coach said another aspect the team has been working on lately is ball distribution and player positioning. While a lot of those actions often come on the attacking side, the team has been focusing more on the defensive side to help the team regain possession and build up its attack.
It was the team’s second scrimmage of the preseason, following a friendly earlier this week on Jan. 25 against the Georgia Storm. Getting to play outside of Atlanta allowed the team to get the feel of a competitive environment and try out Pineda’s concepts early on its preseason.
“There’s moments where you can look back on it, and we’ll certainly do that with this game,” goalkeeper Brad Guzan said. “We’ll look back at the video and get better and learn from these real moments that happen against a real opposition, not just our 11 in what’s essentially an inner squad scrimmage.”
Guzan started in goal. Gutman started at left fullback and Aiden McFadden played on the right. Campbell and Alan Franco completed the back four.
Wolff and fellow Homegrown Jackson Conway made the starting XI, complementing Araújo in the attack. Ozzie Alonso, Matheus Rossetto and Franco Ibarra started in the midfield for Atlanta.
Pineda sent a new group out in the second half including returning first team members Mikey Ambrose, Alex De John and Amar Sejdić. SuperDraft picks Danny Centeno and Daniel Bloyou played up top and connected for the team’s fourth goal (a header by Bloyou). Homegrown Bryce Washington manned the back line and Dylan Castanheira took over goalkeeping duties.
A few 2’s and academy players who have been training with the first team so far this preseason started the second half as well: Darwin Matheus, Robbie Mertz, Luke Brennan and Ajani Fortune.
Forward Tola Showunmi came on as a sub in the 77th minute.
Athens was an exciting setting for Atlanta United, a club that plays its regular season games 70 miles east in downtown Atlanta. Supporters filled out the stands at the soccer complex to make Athens reminiscent of match days at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. They brought with them flags and scarves, and kept the stands loud and rowdy with beating drums and cheery chants.
“Thank you to the university for allowing us to be here,” Pineda said. “I think it’s a great facility. We were amazed by the quality of the locker rooms and the rooms they have here for the team are just great. The quality of the field was very good, we were impressed about the quality of the grass. I think that helped us perform better today, so I’m very thankful for that.”
A portion of the ticket proceeds from today’s match will be donated to the Piedmont Healthcare Foundation.
Following the friendly in Athens, Atlanta United embarks on a two-week long trip to Guadalajara, Mexico where it will play three more friendlies. A few starters are currently away on international duty but should be back in time to give the Pineda a fuller squad to work in his tactics.
“We are trying to work in certain things, but obviously it’s going to be important that for the future when we have everybody available at the Training Ground and in Mexico that we’ll reinforce a few of the messages that we’ve been doing in Atlanta,” Pineda said.
Defender Brooks Lennon and midfielder Marcelino Moreno were in Athens with the team but neither played in the scrimmage. Lennon returned early from his callup with the U.S. men’s national team because of an ankle injury. Moreno is recovering from getting stepped on in practice. Both players are day-to-day and Pineda is hopeful both will be able to participate when the team travels to Mexico.
Stay tuned to ATLUTD.com and ATLUTD on Twitter for the latest coverage of the team’s preseason.
