Atlanta United travels out West for the first time this season as the 5-Stripes take on the Seattle Sounders FC in a clash of two of the top teams in the league. Coming off a dramatic victory at home, Atlanta looks to ride that momentum into this weekend. Seattle has been riding high all season, so Sunday will prove an excellent test for Gabriel Heinze and his team. Fans can catch the action across the country live on FOX starting at 4:30pm ET. Let’s take a look at the Tools to the Match presented by The Home Depot.
Make a Road Statement This Weekend
In its team history, Atlanta United has fared well against teams from the Western Conference. In MLS Regular Season matches, the 5-Stripes have compiled a record of 23-9-5 against Western Conference sides. Sunday will be the only road match against a team from the Western Conference this season. Atlanta can make a huge road statement on national TV with a victory at Seattle. As a team, Atlanta’s passing accuracy in the opponent’s half is 81.6 percent, the highest mark in MLS. Individually, Santiago Sosa ranks fifth in the league with a 90.9 passing accuracy.
Controlling the tempo and the match through Atlanta’s midfield with Sosa and Emerson Hyndman will be one of the keys to success for the 5-Stripes on Sunday. Their partnership has continued to grow and flourish as this season has gone on.
“Our partnership on the pitch has started off really well. He’s a great player obviously,” Emerson Hyndman told reporters earlier this week. “He helps with the distribution out of the back. He’s tough on the ball with his challenges. We try to balance it out on the pitch, who gets the ball when and when’s the right moment to switch the play and confuse the opponents. It’s in the building stages, but it’s off to a good start and it’s only going to get better.”
Quieting Seattle’s league-leading attack
Over the past few seasons, Seattle has seemingly always started the season off slow and then made a strong run at the end of the regular season and into the postseason. This year, the Sounders have switched up their fortunes and have come out of the gate on fire. They lead the league in points (16) and goals scored (13). They are one of only three teams in MLS who have yet to taste defeat in 2021. One of the key factors in that is Raul Ruidiaz. The Peruvian striker has been on target five times in 2021. A true poacher in the box, Atlanta United’s defense will have to keep a close eye on Ruidiaz for the entire match.
Head Coach Brian Schmetzer switched up the team’s shape and formation going into this year and has seen tremendous success early on. Cristian Roldan has been the orchestrator in midfield, while wingback Brad Smith has already chipped in three goals from his position this year. Atlanta’s defense has only conceded four goals (T-3rd in MLS) and will be put to test on Sunday afternoon.
Continue to create scoring opportunities
The 5-Stripes have created at least seven chances in every MLS match this season. It will be important for Atlanta to continue that trend on Sunday. Brooks Lennon in particular has been one of the standout players in the league in terms of chance creation. The right-sided player is creating 2.4 chances per match, which ranks him eighth in MLS. He’s also one of the most accurate crossers in the league coming into this weekend with 41 percent of his crosses or corners finding his teammates. It’s only a matter of time before those chances and crosses turn into goals.
Sunday will provide another test for Gabriel Heinze’s squad as they travel to take on the Seattle Sounders. Kickoff is set for 4:30pm ET, and fans can tune in live on FOX and Star 94.1 FM Radio.
