Atlanta United welcomes CF Montréal to Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the final match before the first international break of the 2022 season. The 5-Stripes are coming off a clutch 2-1 victory against Charlotte last week, while Montréal is looking for its first points of the 2022 season. The visitors also had to play in midweek, drawing Cruz Azul 1-1 (losing 2-1 on aggregate) in Concacaf Champions League action, while Atlanta enjoyed a full week of training and will look to take advantage of being the fresher of the two sides. Let’s take a look at the Tools to the Match presented by The Home Depot against CF Montréal.
Continue Excellent Home Form
Atlanta opened the 2022 season with two home victories against Sporting KC (3-1) and Charlotte FC (2-1). If you go back to the end of last season, that gives the 5-Stripes a nine-match unbeaten run at home. During that stretch, Gonzalo Pineda’s side has scored 20 goals at home, which is tied for the third-highest home goals total in MLS.
Another good sign for Atlanta this past season was Josef Martinez finding the back of the net. The goal was his 90th goal in his MLS regular season career for Atlanta in 111 matches played. He has also now scored against 25 different MLS opponents, tying Chris Wondolowski’s all-time league record. The only active league teams Martinez hasn’t scored against yet are Nashville SC and Austin FC.
Contain Mihailovic and Deal with Set Pieces
Last season, CF Montréal made a big splash in the transfer market by acquiring talented midfielder Djordje Mihailovic from Chicago Fire FC. The midfielder repaid that trust and faith in him with a career-high 16 assists in 2021. Mihailovic does most of his damage in the center of the park, finding pockets between midfield and the backline and then creating opportunities for his teammates. Atlanta United’s defensive midfield, which has been anchored by Ozzie Alonso in two of the three matches, will need to be aware of Mihailovic and limit his ability to find teammates.
Defensive set pieces have also been one of the main points of emphasis this week for Pineda. The 5-Stripes conceded a goal off a set piece against Charlotte, after conceding one against Sporting KC in the season opener. Pineda told reporters this week that working on set pieces, both offensively and defensively, is something his coaching staff takes a lot of pride in and they will look to improve in that area as the season goes on.
Continue to create Big Chances
One of the big points of emphasis coming into this season for Pineda and the team was to find ways to create more “Big Chances”. Big Chances, as defined by Opta are opportunities where a player has a good chance to score. Last season, Atlanta created 58 big chances in 34 total games during the regular season. That ranked 21st in MLS in terms of total number (58) and per-game average (1.71). Through three matches this season, the 5-Stripes have improved dramatically in that area. This year, Atlanta is tied for 3rd in the league in total big chances created (8) and per-game average (2.66). Last season, New England led the league with a 2.68 per-game average in that category, so Atlanta is on the right track so far this season.
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