Atlanta United bersiap menghadapi tuan rumah Orlando City SC dalam babak perempat final kompetisi sepak bola Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup pada Selasa, 19 Mei 2026, demi memperebutkan tiket menuju semifinal.
Pertandingan di Stadion Inter&Co ini digelar hanya tiga hari setelah kedua tim bermain imbang 1-1 dalam laga Major League Soccer (MLS) pada Sabtu lalu. Berdasarkan laporan dari bolavip.com, Orlando City saat ini mengantongi 14 poin di liga domestik, sedangkan Atlanta United membayangi dengan raihan 11 poin.
Menjelang laga krusial ini, pelatih Atlanta United, Tata Martino, mengonfirmasi adanya evaluasi taktis berdasarkan performa anak asuhnya pada pertandingan sebelumnya.
"Of course, there are things tactically that we're analyzing," kata Martino. "There are things that we've seen in the last match, whether it's in the defensive or attacking phase that we need to have in account."
Kondisi cuaca panas dan kelembapan tinggi di Florida diprediksi menjadi tantangan berat bagi strategi tekanan tinggi (press) yang diterapkan oleh kubu Atlanta United.
"I'm comfortable with [the press], because that's what we're aiming for," ujar Martino. "But there's also moments like what happened against Galaxy. I think we've been doing it well and we've been able to maintain it for periods of time. We want to prolong those periods but [also] understand that when we can't, we have to be aware of those moments in transition. If we're making a decision between going and not going, I'm always going to prefer to go."
Martino juga menilai jadwal padat tim lawan bisa menjadi faktor pembeda pada pertandingan penentuan ini.
"If there were any advantages, it would be the same for both teams in this situation," tutur Martino, "with the difference being that we know Orlando has played more minutes over the last week than we have."
Di sektor penjaga gawang, Atlanta United kembali memercayakan posisi starter kepada kiper cadangan Jayden Hibbert yang bertekad memanfaatkan momentum turnamen piala ini.
"I take every day with the with the mindset of trying to improve," kata Hibbert. "I'm trying to do anything I can to help the team, and in doing so, get me on the field. If that comes sooner than later, great. If it doesn't, I'm going to be doing the same thing every day to try to get there."
Pemain berusia 21 tahun tersebut mengaku terus belajar dari kiper veteran Lucas Hoyos untuk meningkatkan ketenangan serta kemampuan mengalirkan bola dengan kaki.
"I'm eager to get any opportunity I can," ujar Hibbert. "Any sniff of the pitch, I'm going to take my opportunity with two hands and I'm going to grab it. I'm grateful for any opportunity that comes, and i'm always prepared."
Hibbert juga menambahkan bahwa keunggulan fisik dan kebugaran atas Orlando City harus dimaksimalkan sejak awal laga.
"I thought I was calm player, but this guy in the net is super suave," ucap Hibbert. "He says that all the time. 'Suave, suave.' Smooth, relaxed ... He's been a great tool for me."
Motivasi tinggi diusung oleh seluruh skuad Atlanta United untuk menyudahi perlawanan rival mereka dan melangkah ke fase berikutnya.
"We're going to use everything we can to try and beat them into the ground and move on to the semifinal," tegas Hibbert.
Situs resmi orlandocitysc.com merilis susunan pemain resmi tuan rumah yang menampilkan Javier Otero di bawah mistar gawang serta Tiago yang masuk menggantikan Marco Pašalić, sementara Tyrese Spicer terpaksa absen akibat cedera saat latihan.
