Atlanta United will look to end a lengthy winless run when they welcome Columbus Crew to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium for an MLS clash. Both teams have been plagued by defensive problems in recent weeks and should produce goals on Saturday.
Atlanta United are coming off a 1-1 draw against Cincinnati in their previous MLS fixture. They fought back from a goal down with Ronald Hernandez’s effort midway through the second half earning them a share of the spoils.
It has been a poor campaign for the White Stripes, who have claimed just two wins from 14 matches this season. That poor run has seen Gabriel Heinze dismissed as manager with assistant Rob Valentino taking interim charge of the team.
One major problem for Atlanta United this season has been their inability to maintain their discipline in defence. They are without a clean sheet in their last four matches and have conceded seven goals in that run.
Columbus Crew are also coming of a draw as they were held 0-0 by Nashville last time out in the MLS. They had a bulk of the possession but failed to make their chances count.
The reigning MLS champions have not been at their best this season and head into Saturday’s clash with just one win from their last six matches. They are currently sixth in the Eastern Conference and could find themselves out of the playoff places if results do not go their way this weekend.
Like Atlanta, defending has also been a problem for Columbus Crew this season, particularly on their travels. They have kept just one clean sheet in their last seven away matches and were held to a 2-2 draw in their previous fixture on the road.
How the bookies view it
Atlanta United are favourites among the bookies with a home win priced at 11/9 by SBK. Betfair is offering 5/2 for a Columbus Crew victory while a draw is set at odds of 40/17 with SBK.
Head to head
Columbus Crew have a 7-5 advantage from 12 previous matches against Atlanta United. The Crew claimed a 2-1 victory in the most recent meeting between both teams back in November.
Players to watch
Atlanta United have multiple attacking threats with forwards Josef Martinez and Jackson Conway among the goals this season. Martinez is priced at 10/11 by Vbet to score anytime while bet365 is offering 9/4 on Jackson Conway in the same market.
Lucas Zelarayan will be the one to watch for Columbus Crew having scored five goals this season. The midfielder is priced at 21/10 to score anytime by bet365, who are allso offering 11/4 on Erik Hurtado in the same market.
Anything else catch the eye?
Atlanta United and Columbus Crew have struggled defensively and are likely to produce goals on Saturday. Both teams could be backed to score at 13/17 with Vbet, over 2.5 goals is priced at 42/41 by SBK while over 3.5 goals is set at odds of 5/2 with Paddy Power.
Atlanta United could be tipped to score first at 4/5 with Skybet while a halftime draw could also be on the cards at 6/5 with bet365.
This MLS match between Atlanta United and Columbus Crew will be played on Jul 24, 2021 and kick off at 20:30. Check below for our tipsters best Atlanta United vs Columbus Crew prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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