Atlanta United FC vs. LA Galaxy
2017 MLS Match Preview
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, Ga.
Wednesday, September 20 – 7 pm ET
WATCH: ESPN2, ESPN Deportes in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada
Atlanta United FC provided plenty of fireworks over the weekend, setting the all-time MLS single-game attendance record in their wild 3-3 draw against Orlando on Saturday. They'll look to keep that excitement going on Wednesday, when the LA Galaxy come to town for a midweek tilt at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Though it ended in a mildly disappointing tie, the match continued an incredibly potent attacking run for Atlanta. The Five Stripes have scored 10 goals in their last two matches, and 13 in their last three. Josef Martinez has a whopping seven of those goals, registering back-to-back hat tricks against New England and Orlando after hitting the back of the net once in the club’s 3-0 win against FC Dallas on Sept. 10.
That sort of attacking firepower could spell doom for the Galaxy, who suffered a demoralizing 4-0 home loss to a Sebastian Giovinco- and Jozy Altidore-less Toronto FC on Saturday. Things got ugly for LA after the game, with head coach Sigi Schmid holding a 15-minute closed-door meeting in the locker room and supporters remaining in the stands until Romain Alessandrini came out to address them 45 minutes after the final whistle.
Atlanta United FC
- Suspended: None
- Suspended after next caution: None
- International Duty: None
- Injury Report: QUESTIONABLE – D Greg Garza (left hamstring injury)
Projected Lineup
(4-2-3-1, left to right)
Brad Guzan – Greg Garza, Michael Parkhurst, Leando Gonzalez Pirez, Tyrone Mears – Carlos Carmona, Kevin Kratz – Yamil Asad, Miguel Almiron, Hector Villalba – Josef Martinez
Notes: Atlanta have lost only once against Western Conference opposition this year (6-1-3) and have won all four of their home matches against Western opponents by a 12-3 margin ... After losing two of their first three home games, Atlanta are unbeaten in their last nine regular season contests in Georgia (7-0-2). They have 13 goals in three games since opening Mercedes-Benz Stadium last week.
LA Galaxy
- Suspended: None
- Suspended after next caution: D Bradley Diallo, D Nathan Smith
- International Duty: None
- Injury Report: OUT – D Robbie Rogers (ankle injury), M Sebastian Lletget (foot surgery), M Baggio Husidic (fractured fibula), D Pele van Anholt (torn ACL/meniscus)
Projected Lineup
(4-2-3-1, left to right)
Jon Kempin – Ashley Cole, Daniel Steres, Michael Ciani, Nathan Smith – Jonathan dos Santos, Jermaine Jones – Emmanuel Boateng, Giovani dos Santos, Bradford Jamieson – Gyasi Zardes
Notes: LA had zero shots on goal against Toronto on Saturday, marking just the fifth time the Galaxy have failed to register a single shot on target since the start of the 2010 season. LA have suffered that ignominy twice since Sigi Schmid took over for Curt Onalfo in the summer.
All-Time Series
Wednesday’s match is the first meeting between expansion side Atlanta and MLS originals LA Galaxy.
Referees
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Assistant Referees: Joe Fletcher, Jeffrey Greeson
Fourth Official: Jose Carlos Rivero
VAR: Christina Unkel
