Atlanta United cruised to a 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake — their third win in the last eight days — as Julian Gressel bagged a goal and an assist while 16-year-old George Bello put in a phenomenal shift in his first-career start. Atlanta United controlled the first half from the outset. The Five Stripes out-shot RSL 8-1, while the wing back duo of Bello and Gressel thrived. Bello completed each and every one of his passes and provided a much needed shock of pace on the left. Gressel provided the half’s only goal. A charging run to the endline from Miguel Almiron ended in a cross that somehow found Gressel. Gressel matched Almiron’s abandon with cool. The super draft pick took the ball down with his chest and and sent a half-volley flying into the net. Top corner Absolute SCREAMER from @JulianGressel! https://t.co/3VTFgReLkZ — Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) September 22, 2018 In typical fashion, Gressel spoke of the spectacular goal with the same fervor of a man describing microwaving leftovers. “The ball bounces perfectly right off my chest, I take a pretty good touch with it, it bounces nicely in front of me and then I just tried to bend it,” he said. “It went right where it was supposed to go.” Atlanta took a 1-0 lead into the break. With RSL still struggling to find chances, Atlanta extended their lead 15 minutes into the second half. Gressel threw the ball in and Villalba sent a half-volley goalward. The shot clattered off the post and then off the back of a diving Nick Rimando and into the net. When @TitoVillalba15 hits it from distance.... It's ending up in the net https://t.co/nerRiZKSXC — Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) September 23, 2018 Villalba now has seven goals on the year. Gressel picked up his 14th (!) assist off the throw, adding to a remarkable tally in a remarkable year. “He’s done it all,” Jeff Larentowicz said of Gressel. “Honestly, from the moment he came in you knew there was something about him. He was a special player. Last year he did it where he was playing multiple positions but this year he’s excelled at every one. Any player that’s playing with that level of confidence is good for the team and right now he’s involved with everything good that’s Atlanta United when we’re on the field.” While Larentowicz was complimenting Gressel, Gressel was quick to sing the praises of the teenager playing opposite him. Despite a bit of understandable nerves from Bello off the pitch, Gressel had nothing but positive things to say about Bello on it. “I thought he had a great game. He was clean on the ball, he didn’t seem nervous -- I’m sure he was, he looked like it in the locker room -- but he had a great performance and there’s many more starts to come,” Gressel said. “He was asking a lot of questions, especially to me. Asking how to be as a wing back. But like I said it didn’t seem like that at all on the field and he had a tremendous performance.” Bello immediately confirmed the pregame nerves. He also confirmed just how quickly they dissipated. “I was kind of jittery, kind of shaking during the day,” the Douglasville native said. “Once I took the first touch of the ball I was like ‘Alright, this is what I do.’ I calmed down after that and I just tried to play the best I can play.” Bello said his teammates talked to him throughout the day and helped keep him calm. It’s even easier to buy into what your teammates are saying when those teammates are a part of side that now sits four points clear of New York Red Bulls in the Supporters’ Shield with four games left. Not to take away from Bello, though. Tata Martino agreed that you have to be brave beyond your years to start and play well in front of 72,017 people. “The good thing is we have young players but we’re able to add them to a very solid team. So when they go onto the field there’s a better chance of them to perform well because of the guys around them. But with George this game we also wanted to give a couple of guys rest and George came on and did a really good job,” Martino said. “He’s only 16 years old but he has to be brave to step into that spot.” Tata predictably wouldn’t hint at a timetable for Bello’s next start. If he did do enough to earn a second consecutive start over Chris McCann, it will come in the biggest game of the season. The Five Stripes head to Harrison, New Jersey on Sunday for a massive meetup with the second-place New York Red Bulls. There was no looking ahead for Atlanta though. They were just glad to have made it through three games in eight days still in tact, and still in first. “We just played three in a week!” Larentowicz said when asked for his thoughts on the match-up. “I’m going to turn off for a few days. You guys should too.”<doc-sep>Real Salt Lake head to Georgia to take on the league leaders. Atlanta United have had an extremely successful sophomore year, with Josef Martinez leading the golden boot race with a staggering 30 goals. Real have had an odd season, starting out slowly, later getting two six goals wins in a row, and drawing Minnesota United in their last game. If RSL want to get anything out of this game, they’re going to need to play at their best. There’s a New Ned in Town RSL’s defense could have been much, much worse than it has been this season. Right back Tony Beltran has been out all season. His replacement, Adam Henley, has not seen significant playing time, and when he has taken the field, hasn’t looked particularly good. The team has an injury list which includes permanent members like Horst and Beltran, and occasional appearances from Marcelo Silva and Shawn Barry. Nick Besler has done his best (and at times very well) as a fill-in center back, but that’s not his position. Thus, Nedum Onuoha. Onuoha seems like the real deal. He’s been the captain of Queens Park Rangers for the past three years, and played in both the Championship and Premier League. He has a passion for developing younger players, which is just what this young back line need. I’m hoping he gets the start against Atlanta. I’m not sure the Besler/Glad partnership is up to task, so if Petke feels that Nedum is ready to be thrown into a game, I’m excited to see his impact against the attacking force of ATL. The Mid Field Question Common consensus is that once Kyle Beckerman left the field, RSL struggled against a poor Minnesota. There’s still no clear replacement for Beckerman. Granted, both Kreilach and Belser could be defensive midfielders, but RSL’s injury/roster issues are pushing those players out of position. There’s no way around Ruiz’s abysmal performance last weekend either. If Beckerman can’t go the full 90, this team is in serious trouble. Can the captain play the entire match, and if not, how does the team do without him? The Wings We’re seeing good chemistry between Rusnak and Damir, but Plata and Savarino felt less present during RSL’s last match. This isn’t to say they’re playing poorly, but their contribution was one of several issue’s last weekend. Watch to see how they pull defenders out, provide service into the box, and create or take chances themselves. If we don’t have a true number 9, our wingers have to live up to their considerable potential in order to get a result. Injury Report OUT: Beltran (knee 10/15/17) Allen (knee 6/16/17) Horwath (achilles 4/18) Horst (achilles 6/26) QUESTIONABLE: Phillips (hamstring 9/10) Predicted Line Up Rimando Lennon, Glad, Onuoha, Herrera Beckerman, Sunny Savarino, Rusnak, Plata Kreilach<doc-sep>Five matches. That’s all that remains in the 2018 MLS regular season. As the campaign winds down, Atlanta United couldn’t have asked to be in a better position. They’re in the driver’s seat when it comes to the Supporters’ Shield with a four point cushion over the New York Red Bulls. They also appear to be well on their way to clinching a spot in the 2019 Concacaf Champions League through have the most points in the last two seasons. The red-hot Real Salt Lake comes to town looking to spoil Atlanta’s dreams of multiple trophies this season. The resurgent Western conference side have only lost once since mid-July and have climbed up above the red playoff line to fifth. Croatian midfielder Damir Kreilach has been on a sensational run of form, scoring five goals in the team’s last three games. Atlanta will need to focus on slowing him and fellow star midfielder Albert Rusnak down if they are to get full points in this one. The Five Stripes are coming off the most dramatic win in team history, a wild and crazy 4-3 win in San Jose. They’ll also be playing their third match in seven days. The roof is schedule to be opened on a hot night, as well. Needless to say, fatigue is a great concern for Tata Martino in this one. Darlington Nagbe is expected to be available for selection after resting for the San Jose match. We’ll have to see how Tata deals with all of the tired legs and who he could choose to rest or not. Atlanta United’s Lineup: Real Salt Lake’s Lineup: How to Watch Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium Advertised Kickoff Time: 7:00 p.m. ET Available TV: FOX Sports Southeast Available Streaming: fuboTV (free trial), FOX Sports GO, ESPN+ (Outside of local viewing area) Available Radio: 92.9 The Game (English), AT&T Countdown to Kickoff (FB Live/Periscope), La Mejor 1600 AM (Spanish) This thread will be your match thread. We don’t have many rules here. We just ask that you don’t insult each other personally and treat each other with respect. Debates can get heated and that’s fine, but name-calling and petty insults will get you banned. If you see a comment that you feel is out of line, please report it and it will be dealt with.<doc-sep>Atlanta United travel back home to face Real Salt Lake following a successful road trip that saw six points gained. Here are three key players to watch. Atlanta United are looking to go three for three this week. The team is in the middle of a three-games-in-seven-days stretch, including two wins on the road earlier this week against the struggling teams of Colorado and San Jose. This upcoming match could provide a big boost for Atlanta in the Supporters’ Shield race as they try to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. This Saturday’s opponent, Real Salt Lake, are not struggling like Atlanta’s previous opponents. RSL sit fifth in the West and are looking to make the playoffs. Because of this playoff push, the Five Stripes can expect a strong and fired up opponent in RSL. Real Salt Lake is undefeated in their last four matches, including big road wins over Houston and Colorado. However, their last match was a disappointing draw at home to Minnesota United, so they will be looking to bounce back in a big way this weekend against Atlanta. Here are three players to watch during this big match in Atlanta. 3. Darlington Nagbe Darlington Nagbe made his return from injury last Saturday in a 3-0 win over the Colorado Rapids, but was held out of the subsequent game day eighteen against San Jose. This was most likely done to give Nagbe a rest and an opportunity to recover from his first playing time in months. After the game off, though, I expect Nagbe back this weekend against Real Salt Lake. Want your voice heard? Join the MLS Multiplex team! Write for us! Nagbe will most likely make the starting XI and, if that is the case, I expect a big match from him. He had a large influence on the team against Colorado and his presence on the pitch was severely missed against San Jose. Atlanta’s defense nearly gave up four goals. A big reason for the porous shape was Nagbe’s absence. RSL is an inconsistent team and their form on the road matches that inconsistency. If Nagbe is playing well, he should be able to help Atlanta exploit those inconsistencies and Atlanta should get another three points at home.<doc-sep>
So how was everyone’s week? Pretty uneventful, right? It was a fairly quiet week for Atlanta United, who only managed to complete one of the most outrageous comebacks in recent memory. Now that we’ve all caught our breath and caught up on sleep, it’s time to look ahead to the home game against Real Salt Lake on Saturday. There remains plenty of work to do for Tata Martino’s side and now is not the time for slip ups. Keep your distance Atlanta’s win on Wednesday evening saw them stretch their lead atop the Supporters’ Shield race to four points. With just five games remaining, keeping the distance between themselves and the New York Red Bulls is more important than ever. With that being said, we’ll need to see a much improved performance on Saturday if they are to hold their lead. Despite a 4-3 win, Atlanta United’s performance was as bad as their opening day 4-0 defeat to the Houston Dynamo. It’s a worrying sign with the postseason approaching, but there is more than enough talent for this to be a very minor blip in form. It’s key that the team moves on and focuses on another west coast team, but one that is actually in contention for the playoffs. Wednesday’s thrilling win saw Atlanta United set the new record for most away wins in the MLS post-shootout era. They also tied the record for away points, set by the Seattle Sounders in 2011. A Real race for the playoffs Over in the Western Conference, Real Salt Lake are still fighting for their spot in the playoffs. Currently sitting in fifth, five points clear of the seventh place Vancouver Whitecaps but the pressure is on with few games remaining. Real Salt Lake’s recent form has been hit and miss, with a couple of disappointing ties mixed in with huge six-goal outings against the Colorado Rapids and LA Galaxy. It’s clear that they have the ability to erupt offensively, but have managed just two clean sheets in their previous 10 games. Against Atlanta, they’ll face the best attacking team in Major League Soccer and will need to lock things up in the back if they want to leave Atlanta with a point or three. With Atlanta’s playoff berth confirmed and Real Salt Lake still looking to secure their spot, Saturday’s game has all the makings for a playoff atmosphere. It may not finish 4-3 or be heavily influenced by the lovable Video Assistant Referee, but we should be in for a good one at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.