Training Notes: Get points on the road

The mentality around Atlanta United is what fans and friends have been talking about for the last month or so: get points in the road.

Manager Gerardo Martino, Leandro Gonzalez Pirez and Alec Kann talked to the media before heading to the airport to fly out to Columbus and emphasized the importance of getting points in the road in their upcoming matches.

“It’s true that we been playing well at home, but like you saw at the beginning of the season, we were able to get some good results on the road,” Martino said. “We have to keep working hard and play the same way like we do at home and carry the momentum into the road.”

Even though Atlanta is able to get the lead early, Pirez said that the team has lost it due to lack of concentration and mistakes on their own, which has complicated the game for United.

“Playing on the road is difficult because we don’t have the support of our fans,” Pirez said. “We feel their energy at home but we can’t use that as an excuse either, we have to try our best to play on the road.”

The Five Stripes defeated Columbus 3-1 in their first matchup and will look to earn a similar result when they face each other at Crew Stadium.

“We need to stop conceding so many goals in the road,” Kann said. “If we keep zero in the scoresheet, then we at least get a point out of the game and we need to start that tomorrow. Columbus is a dangerous team, they create a lot of chances, they score a lot of goals but they also give up a lot of goals. In a way, kind of the same story that we have had for parts of the season.”

As the second half of the season gets under way, United currently sits in sixth place of the Eastern Conference and will look to stay above the red line as they’ll look to make a playoffs appearance.

“We want to be in the playoffs, that’s where I feel like this team should be based on talent and schedule,” Kann said. “We’re in good position, we have a lot of home games down the stretch but we need to get points on the road.”

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