Preview: Sporting KC II @ Atlanta United 2

USL Championship Regular Season- Matchday 14

Sporting Kansas City II @ Atlanta United 2

Saturday, July 10, 6:30 p.m. CST

Where: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, Georgia

How to Watch: ESPN+

Sporting KC II is looking for their second consecutive road win on Saturday. Their test will be against a tough, but beatable, Atlanta United 2.

SKC II enters the contest in sixth place of the Central Division. With 10 points from their first 13 games, SKC II is in need of some points, currently five points out of a playoff spot.

They are coming from a tough 4-2 loss at home to Lou City FC. SKC II’s Coby Jones scored his first pro goal off the bench in the second half.

Leading SKC II in goals is Rojay Smith and Enoch Mushagalusa, each with four, just ahead of Tyler Freeman who has three.

New SKC II signing Jamil Roberts is up for the 2021 ESPY Best Play. After being drafted by Sporting KC in this year’s MLS SuperDraft, Roberts could make his pro debut this weekend.

Still out for Sporting KC II is defender Travian Sousa (hamstring strain) and forward Ropapa Mensah (groin strain).

This will be the second of four meetings between these two Central Division rivals. Both sides played out to a 2-2 draw in June, which saw all four goals in a 13-minute span in the second half. Both sides will see each other again in Kansas City in August and October.

Atlanta United 2

Atlanta United 2 enter Saturday’s contest winless from their last five. In that span, they have drawn three and lost two. Their last win came on June 6 against Lou City.

They enter this weekend in fifth place of the Central Division with 14 points and a 3-4-5 record. Atlanta sits three points ahead of SKC II with one game in hand.

Atlanta is coming off a pair of draws this month. Their first one came on July 3 against Memphis 901 FC. Their second came on Wednesday against Indy Eleven.

Aiden McFadden leads ATL with five goals, followed by a trio of players with two, including Tyler Wolff, son of former KC Wizards player and current Austin FC manager Josh Wolff.

Rocco Rios Novo leads Atlanta with 28 saves in six games this season, followed by ex-SKC keeper Alec Kann with 13 saves in four games.

Predicted Starting XI

With the first team off, I have predicted quite a few first team loans. Will other older players like Kendall McIntosh, Nicolas Isimat-Martin or Roberto Puncec get a game this weekend?

I’ve predicted the back five to be all first team loans with Kaveh Rad and Amadou Dia making the trip. The midfield is closer to normal with Cameron Duke joining Petar Cuic and Jake Davis. I also expect Wilson Harris and Grayson Barber will get the start on loan as Harris looks to open his scoring account this season.

Final Prediction

With so many possible loans, this game can go in a lot of different directions.

I am going to predict both sides will draw 2-2 again.

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Update: This story originally state Wilson Harris has two goals and that was incorrect and has been removed.