Atlanta United has only played Vancouver once before, and it’s not a memory they like reliving.
“I remember that we lost,” said Tito Villalba through a translator.
Short and to the point, but something that’s come up among the players at the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground this week as they prepare for their first shot at redemption against the Whitecaps. The biggest issue last year was on set pieces, where Vancouver thrives and particularly against Atlanta, where all three goals came from set piece situations. It’s been an extra focus in training so far this week.
“The first thing is to not concede fouls or give up corners,” said Tata Martino, through a translator. “We have to be attentive and good in our marking. They have some tall and physical players. It’s not just [Kendall] Waston. Now they’ve added Kamara, another player we’ll have to be very careful with.”
Strength and height is one of Vancouver’s biggest strengths, something that makes them a tough opponent for Atlanta United, a team that focuses more on technique and skill than aerial prowess.
“Set pieces are always a concern,” added Michael Parkhurst. “We have to go out there with the right mentality, the right fight and courage to go up there and win balls. We don’t want to give away many set pieces if we don’t have to, and when they do happen we have to man up to the challenge and do our best and make sure to help each other out.”
While the extra practice on set piece defending helps, height is something you can’t teach on the training ground. But it’s something Atlanta United is used to, and something they’ve learned to adapt and defend.
“Just try to put a body on them, get in their way and disrupt their rhythm,” said Darlington Nagbe. “Just try to disrupt their rhythm as they run up to the ball, go body to body, and try to box them out a little bit with a low center of gravity.”
“You know they are going to win the header most of the time because of their size, but you can’t let them win the header without any pressure or contact,” Kevin Kratz added. “Jumping into them a little bit will get them out of balance a little bit that helps get them away from the clear header.”
Goalkeeper Brad Guzan can be a huge help to his defenders, and he knows the importance of commanding his box during those situations.
“Regardless of the game or opponent you’re always trying to command your box and your area and help the guys in front of you when you can. It’s down to responsibility, whether it’s me coming for a cross or a guy winning a battle one-on-one in the air.”
But there aren’t any tricks or secrets to dealing with set piece threats. It’s about staying disciplined but aggressive on the defensive side of the ball.
“Fundamentally, it’s how to mark,” Martino said. “A lot of the goals we’ve given up on set pieces have come because we’ve gotten away from our marks, and we weren’t in contact with them. You can’t give them space to get off a free header, so you have to stay close to your mark.”
“It’s just a lot of aggressiveness,” added Greg Garza. “We have to get back to that. In the D.C. game we did that pretty well and hopefully we can do it with these guys as well.”
Saturday’s match kicks off at 7:30 p.m. EST from Mercedes-Benz Stadium, so make sure you’ve gotten your tickets here. If you can’t make it in person, click here for everything you need to know to tune in to the match.
