The best laid plans, as they say.
Atlanta United had one of the brightest plans coming out of the 2021 season. On paper, it seemed brilliant. Gonzalo Pineda was finally going to have time to develop his formation and play style to fit the likes of Luiz Araujo, Josef Martinez, Miles Robinson, Brad Guzan, Marcelino Moreno, Alan Franco, Santiago Sosa, an incoming Thiago Almada, and others.
Pineda clearly wanted to explore his ideal formation consisting of two center backs, two wing backs, and plenty of attacking power up front in a 4-2-3-1. The idea of fitting MAMA (Martinez, Araujo, Moreno, and Almada) on the pitch simultaneously was too enticing to pass up.