Atlanta United is heading to Yankee Stadium to face NYCFC on a two game unbeaten streak. The game comes after Atlanta soundly beat the Philadelphia Union thanks to the mods issuing a ban to Alejandro Bedoya who triggered a solidarity tantrum from Haris Medunjanin. Somehow Philly actually looked better without their starting central midfield pairing and managed to try to play Atlanta in an open game while chasing an equalizer. Finishing was again an issue for the team - but give Andre Blake credit, he made some tremendous stops and kept the game competitive for the Union. This week Atlanta will try to exercise some demons as the team travels to the Bronx, the site of one of their worst matches last season. With the World Cup upon us, the Five Stripes will actually have an advantage as Jeff Larentowicz, Darlington Nagbe, and Brad Guzan weren’t pressed into duty for the U.S. Men’s National Team and Leandro Gonzalez-Pirez was an obvious snub from the Argentina side that will lose in the final to Germany in Russia. NYCFC will be missing Ronald Matarrita and Rodney Wallace while they try to contain Atlanta United. Anyway... onto the Prekrap Pidg-on or Pidg-off NYCFC is entering a time of flux. Roomers are swirling, as they have been, that their manager Patrick Vieira may be leaving the club to manage OGC Nice. The South of France sounds somewhat more appealing than coaching a soccer team in a baseball stadium while watching managers get the job that he dearly wanted. For his potential farewell match, Vieira will again try to get the best of Atlanta United. So far the teams have a 1-1-1 head to head record with New York recently getting a draw that felt like a loss after Tata Martino made an attacking sub despite having the lead before the Pigeons stole two points in Atlanta earlier this year. Vieira has been one of the best, if not the best, manager in MLS since taking over in New York in 2016 compiling a 39-21-27 record while also having to completely rebuild a team and teach it to play soccer on a laughably small field. Whoever takes over in New York will have a steep learning curve and MLS will be losing a talented manager. The draw earlier this year was a stinging result and one that has helped NYCFC stick around in the MLS table as they sit in second place with 27 points, just two behind Atlanta United. The team will again look to gain ground on the current Eastern Conference leaders as a win will put them in first place in the conference. New York is where they are in the table because they have turned their team from one with aging European stars and the ageless David Villa to a team with young and in their prime South American Designated Players, the ageless David Villa, a stout defense, and an unnoticed and underrated central midfield (though one that will be missing Yangel Herrera for the rest of the season). Even without Wallace cutting in from the wing as a sub or occasional starter and Mataritta playing left back or left wingback, the team has more than enough to get a result against Atlanta United. In their most recent match, NYCFC got completely dominated in a 4-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls in the US Open Cup on Wednesday, but don’t let that result fool you. The Pigeons largely rested their starters and the result speaks to that. One thing that may be different in this match for NYCFC is that the team has been playing in a 3-5-2 that they have to mush into a 3-4-1-2 to fit on their itty bitty field in the Bronx. Still it is a wrinkle that has paid off for the team and enabled Vieira to play Ismael Tajouri-Shradi at left wingishback and get another dangerous attacker on the field. Their 3-0 win against Orlando City featured a brace from Tajouri-Shradi as he sits on seven goals this season. Atlanta United visits NYCFC’s rent controlled apartment There just isn’t much room in Yankee Stadium. At six point three meters by 11. * meters it is the smallest field in the world and the goals are only four feet wide and two feet tall. It’s barely fair for opposing teams that they have to play in such cramped spaces, the bathroom is even in the kitchen for crying out loud! What I’m saying is that the field is small and this is going to pose a problem for Atlanta United, a team built on finding space, stretching defenses and moving the ball around the field as they probe for their opponent’s weaknesses. With this in mind, Atlanta can try to make up for the fact that MLS was so eager to get into the New York market again that they’ve let a team play on an embarrassment of a field for three seasons with seemingly no future plans to press the issue for getting a real soccer home for the Pigeons. Last year in the Bronx, NYCFC did a great job of denying space to Atlanta United and an even better job of stopping Atlanta from breaking on transition to create chances. Expect more of the same this weekend. In order to get a result in the game, Atlanta will need to control possession effectively and breakdown the NYCFC defense. This should be a key difference in the way that the team plays this year as opposed to in their last visit to New York. With the addition of Darlington Nagbe and Ezequiel Barco, the Five Stripes have two players who can pick a pass which should help find Atlanta’s forwards on runs through the box. With Julian Gressel also mastering the cutback this season, Atlanta will have another effective option to get the ball into dangerous areas for the goal scorers. Tito Villalba, who was out injured in the last three matches going back to the game in New England, would be a welcomed returnee for the Five Stripes along with his penchant for long range shots should he be healthy. One other thing to consider about Yankee Stadium is that the ball seems to end up in weird places all over the pitch. With a field as small as the one in New York, players are also in a more confined space and it just seems like it creates opportunities for random things to happen more often than on actual soccer fields. Since the pitch is so narrow and so short, Atlanta should be prepared to take advantage of the recoveries they get in odd areas and try to exploit New York in the times when they can break in transition unexpectedly. According to MLB, the umps will be... REF: ROBERT SIBIGA AR1: ERIC WEISBROD AR2: CJ MORGANTE 4TH: SILVIU PETRESCU VAR: EDVIN JURISEVIC<doc-sep>To get everyone ready for Saturday’s match against NYCFC, we spoke with Hudson River Blue’s Christian Smith to get his take on Patrick Vieira’s reported departure, their struggles against the New York Red Bulls, and their players with World Cup duties. DSS: Is there any truth to these Patrick Vieira to Nice reports? What do you think NYC would do to replace him if he does move on? HRB: At this point, it does appear that Saturday’s matchup will be Patrick Vieira’s last with NYCFC. The Nice rumors have really intensified and the most recent reports out of France indicate that a deal is already done. I wish I knew how the club plans to replace him, but I honestly don’t know. Speculation seems to indicate that assistant coach Christian Lattanzio takes over in the interim, but I’ve also heard names like Mikel Arteta or Medhi Ballouchy when it comes to who will take over permanently. It’s anyone’s guess at this point. DSS: The other New York team once again got the better of NYC during their U.S. Open Cup matchup. What makes NYRB such a difficult team for NYC to play against? HRB: Their high press and our inability/stubbornness to do anything about it. NYCFC’s philosophy is to build out of the back, and the most effective way to counter that is to press high, something the Red Bulls do as a lifestyle. I also believe that NYRB takes the derby more seriously. We have come into both games thus far this year with no intensity to speak of, whereas the Red Bulls come out wanting to punch us in the mouth. Both games have been the result of conceding too early and chasing the game instead of dictating the pace, something we did against them all year last season. There is no semblance of that whatsoever thus far in 2018. DSS: You’ll be missing Ronald Matarrita and Rodney Wallace for the next few weeks as they focus on their World Cup duties for Costa Rica. What impact will their absence have on the team?<doc-sep>Almiron was subbed out at the beginning of the second half of Saturday’s game at NYCFC. He was replaced by Romario Williams. Almiron sustained an injury to his left shoulder in the second minute of the game when he was tackled from behind by NYCFC’s Alexander Ring. Almiron clearly favored the shoulder the remainder of the half.<doc-sep>
Full-time - Atlanta United survive and get a point. 77’ - Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 1: After nine saves, Brad Guzan has finally seen one go into his goal. Alex Callens has equalized via a corner kick. 48’ - Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 0: Finally a breakthrough! Josef Martinez scores yet another goal off an amazing cross from Julian Gressel. DAT BALL. DAT FINISH. pic.twitter.com/GEGMPt6WMm — Dirty South Soccer (@DirtySouthSoc) June 9, 2018 Pre-game: Here we are again. Atlanta United and New York City FC, the top two teams in the Eastern conference, face-off in a big match. It was just under two months ago that these two met in Atlanta and drew, 2-2. Since then, it’s been more of the same with Atlanta leading the East by two points over the blue half of New York. While NYCFC are undoubtedly one of the top teams in the league, their future is very much up-in-the-air. Their manager, Patrick Vieira, is being strongly linked with the OGC Nice managerial opening with rumors stating that this match could very well be his last in charge of the MLS side. Meanwhile, Atlanta United have gotten back on track as of late with wins over Philadelphia and Charleston. The Five Stripes aren’t anywhere close to hitting top gear yet, but the chemistry with the addition of Ezequiel Barco and Darlington Nagbe is growing. This match could end up playing a huge role in both the Supporters’ Shield and CONCACAF Champions League spot standings. Who will come out on top and leave the Big Apple atop the East? Note: We’re trying something new with our match threads this year. We’ll be updating the post with updates of goals and big moments as they happen. Check back every so often during the match for highlights and commentary. Atlanta United’s Lineup: NYCFC’s Lineup: How to Watch Venue: Yankee Stadium Kickoff Time: 12:30 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.