Atlanta United is set to face the reeling Montreal this weekend, looking to win their third game in four weeks. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our MLS odds series, which includes our Atlanta United-Montreal prediction, odds, and pick we have laid out below.
Atlanta United is coming into this game after winning against the newcomers in the MLS, Charlotte FC. By winning against Charlotte, they turned back to winning ways after suffering a 3-0 defeat versus the Colorado Rapids in the second week. On the other hand, Montreal cannot buy a positive result, dropping their first three games. They will look at this game to grab the first points of their MLS campaign.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Atlanta United-Montreal odds:
MLS Odds: Atlanta United vs Montreal Odds
Atlanta United: -155
Draw: +270
Montreal: +370
Over: 2.5 (-126)
Under 2.5 (+104)
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Why Atlanta United will win this game
Atlanta United has been playing some nice football, despite the 3-0 loss away from home to Colorado. They dissected Sporting Kansas City in the first game of the season, winning 3-1. Most interestingly, neither of the goals in the first game were scored by their star man Josef Martinez, showing that they can breed positive outcomes without his help. Of course, he still played a great game, even though he did not end up on the scoresheet. He did, however, score the first goal of their bout versus Charlotte, scoring on a 60th-minute penalty.
When it comes to goals, of course, Atlanta is relying on Martinez, but they have shown some great goalscoring diversity this year. Their five goals have been scored by five different people and they have been able to score in the right moments of the game. While their 3-0 win against Kansas City looks good on paper, two of their goals came in the dying moments of both halves. That is a great thing for Atlanta, as they have a squad that has enough composure to stick to the gameplan, even as the half or the game draws to a close.
Additionally, they are playing a Montreal squad that does not have a single point yet. They scored just two goals and conceded a whopping eight, including four in their last game versus New York City FC. Thus, if they want to get nine out of the possible 12 points, Atlanta will use the opportunity to hammer this game home.
Why Montreal will win this game
It has not been a good season for the Canadian team. As said above, they are woeful, as their defense cannot stop conceding goals. By that metric, they are the worst in the MLS, together with the San Jose Earthquakes. Additionally, after Atlanta, they will have some tough matchups, such as the New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union, and Atlanta United again in just the next few weeks. Yet, in soccer, one can never know what will happen.
While their outlook is depressing, Montreal can still power through a game and sneak some points past the team from Georgia. While their first and third games were routes, their second game against Philadelphia was fairly close. They were up for the last 15 minutes of the first half and about the first ten of the second half, but then a three-minute collapse caused the Union to score two unanswered, and even though Philadelphia got a red card, Montreal could not get back into the game.
If they have another opportunity to go up early, Montreal will have a chance to figure out what went wrong against Philly and hold on to that lead. It will be ideal to do so against Atlanta, as they sneaked past Charlotte in the 96th minute and could be a team they could get their first points against. If not, they have Cinncinnati and the Vancouver Whitecaps in the near future, so they might look there to get their first points on the board.
Final Atlanta United-Montreal Prediction & Pick
While Montreal has some chance to upset Atlanta, the clear winner to go for here is Atlanta United. They are still to get their starman Martinez involved fully, so he might look to punish the terrible Montreal defense and get himself a few confidence-inducing goals. Montreal, as said above, will look at other games on the schedule as realistic chances to get some points on the table. Back Atlanta United to win against Montreal this weekend.
Final Atlanta United-Montreal Pick: Atlanta United (-155)
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