On the surface, Sunday is a decent result: a point against a red-hot Portland team that's been shooting up the Western Conference standings to keep Atlanta United at the top of the table. It will be a valuable point come the end of the season. But there was disappointment in the Atlanta locker room after the match, a feeling that this was a match that got away.
“We’ve got to get back to being that team at home that nobody wants to come here and play,” goalscorer Julian Gressel told reporters after the match. “A few teams come here and they take away points and you never want that especially when you’re on the top of the table. Obviously, you want to win the games at home and we couldn’t do that today.”
There were a lot of positives to take from the match, where the possession and shots were skewed heavily in the Five Stripes’ favor. But it was just the final touch that was missing, one of those nights where the ball just won’t go in the net.
“It’s not so much concerning as it is frustrating,” said captain Michael Parkhurst. You know obviously it’s good that we’re creating these chances. We expect to create a lot of chances at home, but we need to do a little bit better in front of the net. We also need to do better defensively. We expect to get more shutouts than what we’re getting right now, particularly at home. So we’ve got to clean up some things on both sides of the ball.”
“We were looking to attack all game, looking to win the game,” added Leandro González Pirez. “The ball just didn’t want to go in.”
There was frustration in the locker room for a team that is confident against anyone at their home venue. But there’s also a focus, and a recognition that patience is crucial when the team hits a rough patch in front of goal.
“It’s a problem if we don’t create chances, and we create chances – a ton of chances, to be honest,” Gressel said. “It’s just a matter of the final pass – the final concentration – in the box where sometimes we lack a bit of that and that’s why they don’t end up being goals. It’s just a thing that we’re going to have to focus on and really be clinical again. If you look at today, we deserve more goals than the one we scored, Sometimes, teams go through those kinds of stretches, but it’s a good thing that we create chances. One day, they’ll go back in.”
And for a team whose electric attack has lit up MLS ever since their inaugural match, there’s a quiet confidence that with the players Atlanta United have up front, this goal-scoring hiccup will be just a speed bump in their season’s goals.
“We have amazing players up top and they are going to create a lot of chances in a lot of games and score a lot of goals,” said Mikey Ambrose. “Sometimes, they just don’t go in.”
“The most important thing is to create chances and at some point you’re going to convert,” said Tata Martino, through a translator. “It’s true that in some cases I think we’re a little rushed at the time to finish the play. But I’m satisfied with how we played.”
And there’s perspective as well. Yes, Atlanta United’s finishing has taken a tip, but they're still sit on top of the Supporters’ Shield standings with the most goals scored in the league. So while there was disappointment at the final whistle on Sunday, Atlanta United’s players are focused on making this right to get back to winning ways against Orlando City next weekend.
“[We] look forward to the next one and to prepare for Orlando because we need to start getting some wins at home,” Parkhurst said. “Orlando is a team that’s struggling right now, so we’d like to take advantage of that on Saturday.”
That match kicks off at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Grab a ticket or tune in to watch this crucial Eastern Conference match.
