Taking a deeper dive into Atlanta United's schedule, which came out last Thursday .
Toughest stretch. I described the April road trip as brutal. I may have been too kind. The road trip is necessary because April is when Georgia Tech will hold spring football practices at Bobby Dodd Stadium, which is Atlanta United's temporary home until construction on Mercedes-Benz is finished.
Here is the trip
March 31 at Seattle Sounders FC. The Sounders, of course, are the MLS champions.
April 8 at Toronto FC. Toronto, of course, lost to Seattle in the MLS Cup. They feature Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley.
April 15 at Montreal Impact. Montreal was defeated by Toronto in the Eastern Conference finals.
April 22 at Real Salt Lake. Salt Lake finished sixth in the Western Conference, securing that last playoff spot.
Easiest stretch. This probably isn't the best intro because Atlanta United is an expansion squad and therefore faces challenges that other teams don't.
Having said that this is one of two stretches of games against teams that failed to make the playoffs last year:
June 3 at Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Vancouver was 10-15-9 last season.
June 10 at Chicago Fire. Chicago was 7-17-10 last season.
June 17, Columbus Crew SC. This will be a return for Atlanta United defender Michael Parkhurst, who signed with Atlanta United as a free agent. The Crew were 8-14-12 last season.
And then:
July 1, at Columbus Crew SC.
July 4, San Jose Earthquakes. San Jose was 8-12-14 last season.
July 21, at Orlando City SC. Orlando was 9-11-14 last season.
July 30, Orlando City SC. This, of course, is the opening of Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The team features Kaka, formerly considered one of the world’s best players.
TV. Atlanta United will be on national TV a whopping 15 times. That's tied for the second-most in the league, and second only to L.A. Galaxy's 16.
Homecomings. The game at Toronto on April 8 will be Mark Bloom's return to Canada. He was picked up in a trade following the expansion draft.
The game at Montreal on April 15 will be Romario Williams’ return to the team that drafted him third in 2015.
The game at Portland on May 14 will see Atlanta United play against Atlanta’s Jack McInerney.
The game vs. Columbus on June 17 will be the first time Michael Parkhurst will have faced his former teammates.
The game at Orlando City on July 21 will be a return for players Harrison Heath and Mikey Ambrose.
The game at Sporting KC on Aug. 6 will be a homecoming for Atlanta United’s Jacob Peterson, a winger who made 108 appearances for KC. He also played for Colorado, Toronto and San Jose. It will also be a return for goalkeeper Alec Kann, who made seven appearances there last season.
The game vs. Los Angeles on Aug. 19 will be the first time Jeff Larentowicz will face his former teammates. He spent one season with the Galaxy. He also played for New England, Colorado and Chicago.
The game at New England on Sept. 30 will be a homecoming for Atlanta United draft picks Miles Robinson, who played at Syracuse and grew up in Massachusetts, and Julian Gressel, who played at Providence.
Locals returning (not an all-inclusive list). The game against Chicago on March 18 will a return for Daniel Johnson, who grew up in Duluth and was selected by the team in the recent MLS SuperDraft.
The game against Houston on May 20 will mark the return for midfielder Ricardo Clark.
The game against New York City FC on May 28 will mark the return for goalkeeper Sean Johnson, a Lilburn native who was actually a member of Atlanta United for a few hours in December. He was then traded to NYCFC.
The game against Colorado on June 24 will mark the return of Atlanta’s Sam Cronin. The midfielder has also played for Toronto and San Jose.
The game against Dallas on Sept. 9 will be a homecoming for Dallas’ Walker Zimmerman, a defender who grew up in Lawrenceville. It will also be the first time Atlanta United’s Zach Loyd will face his former teammates.
The game against Montreal on Sept. 23 will be a homecoming for Chris Duvall, a right back who grew up in Duluth. He formerly played for New York Red Bulls.
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