After defeating Orlando City by 1-0 on the road last week, Atlanta United will now return home to face the excat same opponent on Saturday, July 29th. Atlanta United have been excellent in their maiden season in the MLS, and they have also been in stunning form lately, having won 6 of their last 8 matches. Orlando City might have made a pretty solid start in the 2017 season, but they have really struggled lately, as they have won just one of their last 8 matches in all competitions, having also suffered a humiliating elimination from the US Open Cup.
Atlanta United (10-7-3) are coming off what could be described as a lucky win by 1-0 on the road against Orlando City. Their opponents were equally good, if not better, throughout the whole match, and if anything, they deserved at least a draw point. Even so, Atlanta United held their advantage and managed to seal their 3rd consecutive win, and 6th in their last 8 matches in all competitions (6-2-0). They are currently sitting at the 4th spot of the Eastern Conference with 33 points after 20 matches, featuring the best offense in the Conference with 40 goals, and the 5th best defense with 27 conceded. They have been quite strong at home so far (6-2-0), where they have scored 21 goals against 10 conceded. They have won each of their last 6 home matches in all competitions, scoring at least 3 goals in 5 matches in that span. They will be coming into this match with a handful of absences, as Kenwyne Jones, Alec Kann and Mark Bloom have all been ruled out, while Jacob Peterson and Josef Martinez are still listed as questionable to participate.
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On the other hand, Orlando City (8-8-5) will be looking to get revenge about the unfair way that they lost last week. They created 13 scoring chances with 5 shots on target, and if anything, they deserved to score at least once. Even so, the reality is this, as that was their second consecutive loss at home, as they have now won just one of their last 8 matches in all competitions (1-4-3), having also dropped out of the US Open Cup in that span, against NASL side Miami. Orlando had made an excellent start in the season, but they have really fallen off in recent weeks, as they are now sitting outside the play-off spots, at the 7th spot with 29 points after 21 matches. They have not been very strong on the road (2-5-2), where they have scored just 6 goals against 16 conceded. They might have won their most recent road match against Real Salt Lake, but prior to that they were win-less in 6 (0-4-2). They will be making this trip with just a few absences, as Rafael Ramos, PC and Kevin Alston have all been ruled out.