Football Season Guide

Despite selling their star players midway through last season Atlanta still enjoyed a decent year. They sneaked into the play-in and then achieved their 1st playoff win since 2019 before being eliminated in the Conference semis. Selling for huge fees 4 of their best players last year freed salary cap space, designated roster slots and lots of cash for bold moves. The 1st of those was made in September when Aleksey Miranchuk joined from Atalanta. This winter the front line was properly rebuilt. Team legend Miguel Almirón, he was MLS’s MVP in 2018 when he led Atlanta to their only MLS title, plus prolific strikers Cayman Togashi and Latte Lath arrived for combined transfer fees north of $32million. With these 4 in the ranks, as well as, the likes of Silva, Lobjanidze and Mosquera Atlanta are shaping to be among the highest scoring teams in 2025. No regulars left this winter and no changes were made on goal and in defence. Considering Atlanta had the 4th best defensive record in their Conference last year this makes sense. To manage all this accumulation of stars and firepower Atlanta also opted to bring in an experienced head coach. Norwegian Ronny Deila spent the last few years in Belgium (Standard Liege and Club Brugge) but he proved his worth as HC of NYCFC from 2020 to 2022. He is an attacking-minded manager and this fits great with all the forwards at his disposal.