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With the majority of the European leagues taking a break, Major League Soccer takes centre stage. The Eastern Conference is typically competitive, however, the New York Red Bulls have made a disappointing start to the campaign and will be looking to get back on track against play-off contenders Atlanta United.
New York Red Bulls
It’s been a season to forget for New York Red Bulls, however, there have been a few signs recently that the Harrison-based club may be starting to turn a corner. Troy Lesesne, who has replaced Gerhard Struber for the remainder of the 2023 campaign has managed to steady the ship somewhat, and with the new play-off format firmly in place, it’s not advised to completely dismiss them from the end-of-season conversation.
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Dante Vanzeir appears to be finally settling into the system and things slowly appear to be moving in the right direction. Even in their 3-0 home defeat to away specialists Orlando, NYRB were the better side according to the data and the nature of their comeback draw against Charlotte shows that Lesesne’s men possess plenty of fighting spirit.
NYRB have won three of their last eight matches, yet they’ve only lost three times during that run too. Two of those three defeats were by a one goal margin (vs Seattle and Philadelphia) and their derby day victory against NYFC will have given the supporters plenty of cause for celebration.
Vanzeir is a terrific player, however, the fact that he is the club’s joint-top goalscorer with two goals despite playing less than 450 minutes tells you everything you need know about the team’s issues in front of goal.
Atlanta
Atlanta are faring better than this opponents and are firmly entrenched within the play-offs. They may not be as effective on the road, yet they pretty difficult to beat. The Five Stripes have drawn five of their last six matches with BTTS landing in nine of their last eleven matches. They are an entertaining match and unlike NYRB’s, they have plenty of players who find the back of the net with regularity.
If Atlanta are to challenge for the MLS Cup this season, they will need to sort out their away form. They have avoided defeat on the road in each of their last three, however, they also been victorious on their travels since the beginning of March.
Giorgos Giakoumakis has been a fantastic addition to this team and he is already into double figures. Thiago Almada is another player who is excelling in this XI and with 15 combined goals and assists this campaign, he is likely to cause problems for the hosts.
Atlanta have lacked control in midfield at times this season, yet their individual ability in the final third has often got them out of trouble.
Head to Head
These two sides have already met this season with Atlanta winning narrowly at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium at the beginning of April. Despite the result and the early goal from Giorgios Giakoumakis, the NYRB turned in a decent performance and will probably feel as though they deserved to take a point from the game.
The visitors have never won at this stadium and they also failed to find the net in five of their first six visits. On a positive note, they’ve only suffered defeat by more than a single goal margin here on one occasion (September 2018).
Key Betting Stats
- Over 2.5 Goals has landed in 74% of Atlanta’s matches this season. BTTS has landed in 79% of their matches. Nevertheless, it failed to land wen these two sides met at the beginning of April.
- The visitors have conceded an average of two goals per game on their travels.
- There have been 26 bookings across Atlanta’s last four away games (an average of 6.5 per match)
- 49% of Atlanta’s goals have been scored in the final 20 minutes of matches
- NYRB have conceded more than a single goal in just 17% of their matches this season
- Although the hosts have an excellent defensive record here, they’ve actually conceded five times across their last two home matches (50% of their total concessions at the Red Bull Arena)
- NYRB have conceded 56% of their goals between the 10th and 40th
Match Prediction
The hosts have opened up a little lately and although they are beginning to create better chances, they have also failed to keep it tight at the back. Only Charlotte have a better record of being involved in high-scoring games this season than Atlanta and they recently came away with a 2-2 from this stadium. It’s hard to make a case for backing the visitors, however, they should be able to register and play their part in an entertaining contest.
Best Bookmaker
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