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The saying goes: “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
Jose Mourinho and Manchester United are learning this lesson right now. Even after United hired the biggest name they could find to manage their club and even after they bought two of the biggest names on the transfer market (Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba), the Red Devils are struggling to find their footing in basically every competition they’re involved in.
Just because you bring in a bevy of high profile names into your club, it doesn’t automatically turn you into a contending team. Manchester United were held to a scoreless draw at home on Saturday by Burnley, a team who’s probably not even worth Pogba’s salary.
It’s going to take many matches and training sessions for the new players to get to know one another and for the collective group to begin playing the style that Mourinho desires. It’s all part of the process.
Atlanta United will be no different. They’ve grabbed a big-named coach and will hopefully bring in a big-name player or two. It’s not going to make Atlanta a contender in MLS overnight. It’s going to take a lot of work and trial and error for them to find their identity as a team in their inaugural season. Thankfully, MLS isn’t as near as demanding as the Premier League is and if Atlanta United does get off to a slow start they’ll still have a chance at the playoffs as the season goes on.
Domestic
NYCFC ready to embark on playoff run (MLSSoccer)
Stefan Frei was Seattle’s real hero against SKC (Sounder at Heart)
The New York Red Bulls' treatment of Gonzalo Veron has been shameful (Once a Metro)
International
Christian Pulisic 'not the happiest' with his performance for Dortmund in derby (ESPNFC)
Joe Gyau makes return from injury for Borussia Dortmund II (Stars and Stripes FC)
Liverpool win six-goal thriller at Crystal Palace (The Liverpool Offside)
Local
Our Sydney Hunte took in the opening round of the Atlantic Sun conference tournament where Kennesaw State got off to a winning start. Read his recap here.