Atlanta undaunted heading into match vs. Crew (Oct 26, 2017)
An expansion franchise in its debut season isn't expected to reach the postseason, let alone host a playoff contest. But Atlanta United hasn't looked like a typical first-year franchise from the very start of the season.
United, the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, will host No. 5-seed Columbus Crew on Thursday in a Knockout Round showdown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Atlanta is the first expansion team to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs in its debut season since 2009. United is 11-3-3 at home this season and defeated the Crew in both of the teams' two meetings this season.
But Columbus enters the postseason in top form. The Crew is unbeaten in their last 10 matches and feature one of the most prolific trios in MLS, with Justin Meran, Federico Higuain and Ola Kamara.
"We understand that those three players for Columbus are their three most influential," Atlanta coach Tata Martino said this week. "But they play in a style where they like to build out of the back starting with their goalkeeper. So we have to do our best to cut out the passes all the way up to those three guys."
Atlanta certainly doesn't lack firepower, either, though. Electric forward Josef Martinez has 19 goals in 20 games this season and has been especially potent in front of the home crowd at raucous Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Atlanta beat the Crew by a combined score of 5-1 in their two meetings during the regular season. But those two games were in June and July. Columbus looks like a better team heading into Thursday.
"We stay calm, because in the last 10 games, we've gained a lot of confidence. We came out unbeaten, so that's a very important thing for us," Higuain told the team's website this week. "We're going to play a very good team, in a beautiful stadium, in front of too many people."
United set an attendance record on Decision Day, when they attracted the largest crowd ever to witness an MLS game with more than 70,000 fans in the stadium to see a 2-2 draw with top-seed Toronto FC. Another record crowd is expected to greet the Crew on Thursday.
"For us, we want to win," Atlanta's Leandro Gonzalez Pirez told the team's website this week. "We want the league. We've taken one step, qualifying for the playoffs. Now we want more."
