Road map for Atlanta United

It was not a shock if, in his first competitive match since the MLS Cup uprising, Atlanta United was beaten 3-1 by a Costa Rican side. Twist the timeless phrase of Spider-Man's Uncle Ben: "A great feat for football is synonymous with bigger and more exotic challenges. Barely ten weeks after his triumphal night in the Mercedes-Benz stadium, he lost in a stadium of 8,700 seats located near the Panama Canal. When you are an MLS champion, you have to play in the CONCACAF Champions League, which can be as painful as a privilege.

As a result, even before the end of February, new champions in the arena faced a playoff match on a loan. (The Mercedes-Benz stadium has been booked for the Supercross, which will force the second leg of Thursday to be held at Kennesaw State.) Established football giants are used to juggling competitions – Manchester City closed the month of February playing four games in 12 days, the four in a different league / event – but all this is new to ATLUTD.

To his credit, United beat Herediano 4-0 on Thursday, qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Champions League 5-3. This means that they will play at least two other games under pressure outside the boundaries of the MLS. Next leg: a return match against Monterrey in Liga MX.

When asked about acclimatization, United coach Frank de Boer said, "One hundred percent, of course. If you play normally every week, every six or seven days, you have the preparation for those matches. Now he's just recovering and getting ready for the next game. It's every three or four days you have a party. It's very different, and they have to realize that they really have to take care of themselves, recover, take a massage and rest well to be ready for the next game. "

Then: "It's a different approach that many players may not be used to, but they have to experience it. You must feel it. Hopefully we can adapt quite quickly because we need it, also because of travel. It is of course different from Europe. Normally (European clubs) have a flight of two hours, a flight of one hour. Now you sometimes have a six or five hour flight. It's a huge difference. I think a lot of players are used to traveling, but maybe not every three days. "

Another difference: Atlanta United has something to defend, which proved difficult in MLS. The holders have retained only three times in the first 22 years of the championship, the last edition of this season. In a sport where scoring the first goal is disproportionate, the margin between winning and losing is especially becoming even finer when some teams are invited to play more often than others.

Here is what United has in front of him: the regular season of 34 games of the MLS, which will start Sunday in Washington D.C .; the mid-season American Open Cup Lamar Hunt, which is a separate knockout tournament, and the current CONCACAF Champions League, which could see them playing three more games for two, as they are called at football . And each time that ATLUTD aligns, it will meet an opponent seeking to defeat the defending champions of American football.

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The MLS does not look like the Italian Serie A, where Juventus triumphed seven consecutive seasons, nor in the German Bundesliga, where Bayern Munich finished first for the first six times. Two years ago, Toronto FC was clearly the class of the league, winning both the Supporters' Shield and the MLS Cup. Last year, he finished ninth in the East Conference with 11 teams.

Brad Guzan, United's goaltender: "With every new season, there is no guarantee that it will be as good as last year, or potentially, if last year was bad, as bad as last year. A new season, that is it. Everyone starts from scratch. "

Atlanta United may still have the best lineup in the league, but it has lost Miguel Almiron, who was at worst the league's second-best player, against Newcastle in the English Premier League. In replacement, Gonzalo Martinez, nicknamed Pity, left the famous Argentine club River Plate. ATLUTD also saw Tata Martino, his coach, leave to take charge of the Mexican national team. If you list the top three reasons why United went from Expansion to Champion, two of them disappeared. (The third, MLS MVP, Josef Martinez, remains in place.)

That's not to say that Atlanta United can not handle more games and more control. It has been a high level club since the opening minute of its opening night at Bobby Dodd Stadium, there are two marches, and it has absolutely walked. We are on the verge of seeing if Atlanta's new favorite team can grow stronger. We are about to see if this club, after rising on the world stage, can hold the attention.