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[monks data]
Atlanta United
Major League Soccer
May 18, 2023 at 12.30am UK
Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Colorado Rapids
Atlanta
4 - 0
Colorado
Almada (29'), Araujo (80'), Wolff (87'), Giakoumakis (90')
Almada (30')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Priso-Mbongue (23'), Nicholson (53')

Preview: Atlanta United vs. Colorado Rapids - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Wednesday's Major League Soccer clash between Atlanta United and Colorado Rapids, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Atlanta United will be aiming to bounce back from four successive defeats when they host Colorado Rapids in MLS on Wednesday.

The visitors, meanwhile, were beaten 2-1 at home by Philadelphia Union in a fiery encounter at the weekend.


Match preview

Atlanta United head coach Gonzalo Pineda looks on on April 9, 2023© Reuters

After collecting a highly respectable tally of 18 points from their opening nine league games of the current campaign - losing only one match during that period - Atlanta have since been defeated in three consecutive MLS games.

Nashville SC, Inter Miami and Charlotte FC have all got the better of Gonzalo Pineda's side, with Memphis 901 FC also stunning them in extra time of their US Open Cup fixture towards the end of April.

Trailing 1-0 at home to Charlotte at half-time over the weekend, Andrew Gutman's 51st-minute dismissal gave the hosts little chance of mounting a comeback, with goals from Karol Swiderski and Justin Meram taking the game away from them before the hour mark.

Having missed out on the playoffs in his first season in charge last time out, Pineda will be desperate to bounce back and reach the business end of the MLS season this time around, with his players needing to return to winning ways sooner rather than later to avoid a losing rot setting in at the club.

Colorado Rapids head coach Robin Fraser reacts on April 15, 2023© Reuters

Colorado, meanwhile, head into their clash against Atlanta sitting just outside the playoff positions in the Western Conference table, having missed out on the chance to move back inside them by losing at home to Philadelphia last time out.

Goals from Kai Wagner and Julian Carranza either side of half time turned the match on its head after Connor Ronan had dispatched a penalty in the 38th minute, before Braian Galvan and Jesus Bueno were both sent off during second half injury-time in a match which featured 11 cards in total.

The defeat brought an end to Colorado's impressive nine-match unbeaten run in all competitions, although five of their seven league games during that run had ended in draws, minimising Robin Fraser's side's upwards movement in the table.

However, they will sense an excellent opportunity to inflict more misery on their forthcoming opponents on Wednesday, and claim the positive result that could bring them back into the top seven.

Atlanta United Major League Soccer form:

Colorado Rapids Major League Soccer form:


Team News

Atlanta United Head coach Gonzalo Pineda looks on before the game between the Atlanta United and the Toronto FC at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on March 4, 2023© Reuters

Atlanta will be without Gutman due to suspension after his dismissal against Charlotte, with Caleb Wiley likely to drop into a deeper position at left-back.

Erik Lopez, Brad Guzan and Osvaldo Alonso are all expected to remain sidelined through serious injuries, but Georgios Giakoumakis could be set for a start after only being deployed from the bench at the weekend.

Colorado, meanwhile, will travel without the banned Galvan, who was sent off despite only appearing as a second-half substitute during his side's loss to Philadelphia.

Abraham Rodriguez, Jack Price, Jackson Travis and Aboubacar Keita all remain sidelined through injury, so Fraser may be tempted to opt with the same starting XI despite seeing his side's nine-match unbeaten run come to an end.


Atlanta United possible starting lineup:
Westberg; Lennon, Robinson, Sanchez, Wiley; Sejdic, Ibarra; Araujo, Almada, Giakoumakis; Berry

Colorado Rapids possible starting lineup:
Yarbrough; Abubakar, Maxso, Wilson; Nicholson, Ronan, Leyva, Markanich; Rubio; Cabral, Lewis


SM words green background

We say: Atlanta United 2-2 Colorado Rapids

Both teams will be desperate to bounce back after suffering defeat at the weekend, and we can envisage a hard-fought, entertaining affair as a result.

In truth, there is little to split these sides based on individual quality, with the visitors' superior form likely to help towards a decent point on the road.

How to watch

You can watch Atlanta United vs. Colorado Rapids and every MLS match this season live on Apple TV. Click here for more details on how to subscribe.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:curl

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Game History

How you voted: Atlanta vs Colorado

Atlanta United
50.0%
Draw
38.9%
Colorado Rapids
11.1%
18
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Tables

Eastern Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1FC CincinnatiCincinnati139312114730
2Nashville SCNashville147431991025
3New England RevolutionNew England137331914524
4Atlanta UnitedAtlanta146442824422
5Philadelphia UnionPhiladelphia136342014621
6DC United145451916319
7Orlando City135441616019
8Columbus Crew135352517818
9Charlotte FCCharlotte FC145361925-618
10New York City FCNY City134451516-116
11New York Red BullsNY Red Bulls143741012-216
12Chicago Fire133641821-315
13Inter MiamiInter Miami135081417-315
14CF MontrealMontreal135081222-1015
15Toronto142751318-513

Western Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Los Angeles FCLos Angeles1274123101325
2St Louis City1372426131323
3Seattle SoundersSeattle147252013723
4Dallas146531613323
5San Jose EarthquakesEarthquakes135351718-118
6Minnesota UnitedMinnesota Utd135351214-218
7Vancouver WhitecapsVancouver134541814417
8Portland TimbersPortland144461820-216
9Austin FCAustin134451318-516
10Houston DynamoHouston124351111015
11Real Salt LakeSalt Lake134361322-915
12Colorado RapidsColorado142661221-912
13Sporting Kansas CityKansas14248921-1210
14Los Angeles GalaxyLA Galaxy132381023-139

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