Predicting Atlanta United’s starting lineup at Philadelphia Union

After a frustrating loss against FC Dallas, Atlanta United turns its attention quickly to the Philadelphia Union. Tito Villalba exited the last match with cramps, but is that enough to keep him out of Saturday’s game? Does such a quick turnaround result in any rest for certain starters? Let’s try and answer these questions.

Here is the definite, surefire lineup for July 7.*

*I’m probably wrong.

Formation: 4-3-3.

Goalkeeper: Brad Guzan.

Left Back: Mikey Ambrose. He might just be the preferred choice over Chris McCann at this point.

Center Back #1: Leandro Gonzalez Pirez.

Center Back #2: Michael Parkhurst. He misjudged an attempted clearance right before Dallas’ final goal. It happens even to the most experienced defenders.

Right Back: Franco Escobar. Dallas made him and Miles Robinson pay for a miscommunication during their second goal. They’ll look to sure things up when the opposing team is countering from the wings.

Central Midfielder #1: Jeff Larentowicz.

Central Midfielder #2: Julian Gressel. I’ve been a fan of his centrally so far. He’s done better than expected.

Attacking Midfielder: Miguel Almiron.

Left Winger: Ezequiel Barco.

Right Winger: Tito Villalba. From what we’ve been told, his cramps aren’t too much of a concern. He will hopefully be ready for the Union.

Striker: Josef Martinez. Wednesday wasn’t all bad news. Josef is, believe it or not, still Josef. Usually, a brace from him is more than enough to take three points. Wednesday was just the one exception we’ve seen in his time with Atlanta.

To recap, here’s my projected lineup against the Philadelphia Union. It’s an oldie, but still a goodie. Tata doesn’t care about rest. They’ll have a whole week to rest after this match.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.