Quick Hits
- Atlanta United will be without members of the first team currently away on international duty. Here are the seven 5-Stripes called up by their home countries.
- One of those players is Thiago Almada, who was called up to the Argentina men's national team. Almada is the reigning MLS Player of the Matchday and also scored the AT&T 5G Goal of the Week. He also scored -- yes, SCORED -- for Argentina on Thursday night.
- As you can see with our beautifully-themed graphic at the top, Atlanta United will be wearing the Forest Kit for the first time this season.
Related
- Atlanta United might be without a few guys on Saturday, but the team prepares no differently | This week's Training Notebook
- Gonzalo Pineda: 'We're not changing the core of the team'
- Tools to the Match presented by Home Depot: How Atlanta United extend unbeaten start to MLS season at Columbus
- Who's in and who's out against Columbus Crew? View the availability report presented by Piedmont.
Match Details
- Date: Saturday, March 25
- Kickoff time: 7:30 p.m.
- Location: Lower.com Field
How to watch, listen and live stream Columbus Crew vs. Atlanta United
- TV: Watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
- Listen: Local radio Star 94.1 and La Mejor
- Live stream: Watch on your phone or device by subscribing to MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app or visit https://tv.apple.com/.
Recent Form
Atlanta and Columbus find themselves on different sides of the Eastern conference heading into Saturday's contest, but it's still very early in the season. Columbus has had a mix of results in the first four matches. They lost their season opener to Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park. Then, they beat D.C. United and played Toronto FC to a draw before dropping their second match of the season on the road. Atlanta United, meanwhile, has never started a season better. The 5-Stripes are unbeaten and have earned 10 points in four matches to climb to the top of the Eastern conference.
The Crew, like Atlanta United, are missing some players to international duty, and will be without forward Cucho Hernández and midfielder Kevin Molino due to injury. Both sides will also be without their master free kick takers in Thiago Almada for Atlanta and midfielder Lucas Zelarayán for Columbus. However, Columbus is always difficult to beat when they play at home. They've only lost once in the months of February or March going back to 2017.
Last Meeting
Atlanta holds a 5-6-1 all-time record against Columbus in MLS regular season play. Last season, the two clubs met twice. Columbus beat Atlanta United 2-1 in the first matchup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, then the two teams played to a draw after an hour-long rain delay last time the teams played at Lower.com Field. Columbus has won five of the last seven meetings with Atlanta United, a reversal of the first seven meetings between the two sides.
Players To Watch
Caleb Wiley (Atlanta United) – The Homegrown has had an excellent start to the season for Atlanta United. Wiley has recorded one goal and one assist in each of Atlanta's last two matches against Portland Timbers and Charlotte FC, and he's currently the club's second leading goal scorer on the year behind Almada. Twice Wiley has earned spots on MLS Team of the Matchday, including this week, and will look to continue his form on the road.
Alexandru Matan (Columbus Crew) – Since the start of 2022, Columbus has had eight different players score outside the box. One of those is Alexandru Matan, the attacking midfielder out of Romania who scored from deep in the club's 2-1 loss to New York Red Bulls. Matan has one goal and one assist on the season for the Crew, and will be looking to attack and create even more chances in Zelarayán's absence.
Columbus Crew  | Atlanta United  | |
|---|---|---|
Head coach | Wilfried Nancy | Gonzalo Pineda |
2023 record (W-L-T) | 1-2-1 (4 points) | 3-0-1 (10 points) |
Conference | Eastern | Eastern |
