Marcelo Balboa Jersey Retirement, First Original Green Home Game- Rapids vs Atlanta Preview

Commerce City, CO— The Rapids return to DICK’s Sporting Goods Park after a successful away trip to Minnesota. Colorado was able to get their third away win of the season, and their first win away from home since March. The Rapids will continue to look to turn over a new leaf without Djordje Mihailović, with Atlanta United coming to town. Atlanta has been disappointing this season, but still has the star power to be a threat. The Rapids got back into a playoff spot with the win against Minnesota, but with the table continuing to be so tight around the playoff line, this would be an important three points for Colorado in the chase to make the playoffs. The Original Green kit will make its first appearance at DICK’s, and Marcelo Balboa will get his jersey retired. It’s going to be a fun one. Let’s take a look at the matchup.

When: Saturday, August 16th @ 7:30 p.m. MST

Where: DICK’s Sporting Goods Park

TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV

Yapi Gets His First Professional Brace in Minnesota

Colorado’s return to MLS play was slated to be a difficult test, with the team taking on third-place Minnesota United in Saint Paul. Both teams ended their Leagues Cup campaign with a defeat. Minnesota had never lost two games in a row before the matchup with the Rapids. The Loons hadn’t lost two games in the same month before Colorado came to town. Despite this, Darren Yapi scored twice in ten minutes to bring all three points back to Colorado in a 2-1 win.

The game saw the Rapids go to a rare five-back to match up with Minnesota. This saw all three center-backs currently on the team line up alongside each other, with Noah Cobb getting his first minutes for the Rapids in MLS play. Chris Armas set up the team to deal with the set pieces that Minnesota has been so good at throughout the season. Sixteen set-piece goals rightfully caught the eye of the Rapids coaching staff, who responded by having as many big bodies on the field as they could. This worked to perfection for Colorado, who escaped Minnesota without giving away a goal off a set piece.

Darren Yapi was the hero of the match. Not only did the homegrown get a brace on the night, but he was crucial in stopping Minnesota on set pieces. At 6’1”, he was tasked with putting out fires on multiple occasions. By the end of the match, he was gassed. But he played the full ninety and played a crucial role in the win. Other than some poor play on Minnesota’s lone goal, it was a textbook example of how to get three points away from home. The team stepped up as one to defend and were able to get some great opportunities on the counterattack. The Rapids could be a real threat in the playoffs if they continue to play away games like they did in Minnesota.

Lineup Prediction:

Steffen / Cannon, Maxsø (c), Murphy, Vines / C. Harris, C. Bassett, Larraz, Ku-DiPietro / Navarro, Yapi

The Rapids are down to just Cole Bassett and Oli Larraz in the midfield, with Connor Ronan, Josh Atencio, and Wayne Frederick all out with injuries. I would be shocked to see anyone but Cole and Oli in the midfield against Atlanta. It would be interesting to see who steps up and is the first guy off the bench if needed. Ali Fadal and Daouda Amadou are like-for-like switches and would get their first Rapids appearance if they were to come in. Sydney Wathuta is another option, although he is normally higher up the field. It could be debut time in Colorado.

It will also be interesting to see how Chris Armas lines up his team. After another week of a different formation and tactical look, Colorado is starting to become increasingly unpredictable in how they line up. They could line up in a five-back system, looking to build on the success they had in Minnesota. It will be telling if Colorado goes out in the same look as Minnesota. It could be a tell that the switch in formation wasn’t just a matchup decision.

The lineup will depend on how many new signings are ready to play. Rob Holding and Alexis Manyoma could make their debuts for the club if their VISA situation is all sorted out. I believe both will slot pretty easily in the starting eleven if so. It would just come down to how match fit they are, and if they have integrated with the team enough. I would not expect to see very new signing, Rafael Santos, in this match.

Should Colorado Switch to a Five-Back?

For most of Chris Armas’ time in Colorado, the Rapids have gone with a formation that has a back four. Throughout the many formations tested in 2025, the game against Minnesota was the first time Chris Armas went with a formation with five in the back. It paid dividends for Colorado, getting their first away win since March. So, is there a case for Colorado to continue with the five-back approach as 2025 comes to a close, with Colorado pushing for a playoff spot?

It would be difficult to adapt to the switch this late in the season, even with the team seamlessly switching to the formation against Minnesota. Colorado has been a team with some fluidity in their formations this season. The team relied on the 4-3-3 early in the year, before the 4-2-2-2 made some appearances, before the team landed back on the 4-2-3-1 formation that was the go-to in 2024. We even saw a 4-4-2 diamond in there against LAFC, for all six minutes it was used before Jackson Travis was sent off. Despite this tactical fluidity that the team has, it is crucial for a team to find an identity. It may be late into the season, but with Djordje leaving the team, it could be time to adapt without the midfielder.

The five-back has its advantages. It gives Colorado more bodies around their own box, helping the defense leak fewer goals. It also puts Sam Vines in the wing-back role that he has flourished at in recent years, with the homegrown getting an assist against Minnesota. The Rapids are able to have a similar midfield, with a double pivot, and the front line keeping the same three attacking spots. The formation takes the number ten spot and moves it to center back, which is where some concerns may arise. Recent signings would also indicate that the team could put more bodies along the backline. Most recent signing, Rafael Santos, was the fourth defender signed in the summer transfer window for Colorado.

Djordje was one of the best in the league at chance creation. That number ten position was crucial for Colorado to make good chances into great ones. That creativity is lost in the 5-2-3 formation. Who steps up and creates chances in the absence of a number ten? This was a question well answered by the Rapids in Minnesota, as they created 1.82 expected goals. However, historically, the five-back gives a team more defensive cover, but at the cost of offensive productivity. The five-back will have its uses for Chris Armas and Colorado. But it may not be the formation of the future for Colorado. Even with the number of center backs the Rapids have signed this window.

Atlanta’s Disappointing 2025 Season

Not many teams in MLS had higher hopes than Atlanta United. They had brought back 2018 MLS MVP Miguel Almirón for $14 million from Newcastle United. They also added Emmanuel Latte Lath from Middleborough for $22 million, then an MLS record transfer fee. Despite spending a combined $36 million on their attack in the winter, Atlanta has only scored 30 goals. Only seven MLS teams have scored fewer goals. Their defense is among the worst in the league, as they have conceded 46 goals, with only four teams having a worse defensive record than Atlanta. Unsurprisingly, this has Atlanta in 13th place in the East, sitting 14 points away from a playoff spot. Only the LA Galaxy has fewer wins than Atlanta, with the team only grabbing four wins in their first 25 matches of 2025.

What has gone wrong in Atlanta? It may be easier to list what has gone right for Atlanta this season, as it has been a disappointing one. The new signings haven’t had the impact that they would have hoped for so far. Latte Lath has underperformed both his expected goals in stats and by name value. The striker has a decent seven goals on the year. But with the expectations and his expected goals value being 9.02, it hasn’t been enough from Latte Lath. Miguel Almirón also hasn’t recaptured his MLS MVP form in 2025. He has been a bright spot for Atlanta, especially recently, but hasn’t scored or assisted enough to keep up with his standards. Atlanta has the pieces to be a very good team, but hasn’t put them together so far this season, and it may be too late for the Five Stripes to turn it around.

Despite this, it may be in Atlanta’s favor to be struggling going into this matchup. Colorado has been poor against Eastern Conference teams below the playoff line. The Rapids are 0-1-1 in games against Eastern teams outside of the playoff line, losing to D.C. United and tying New England, despite leading in both games. Colorado will have to turn this recent streak around against Atlanta on Saturday.

Prediction: Colorado builds on the win at Minnesota and continues to roll against a poor Atlanta side. Rapids win 2-0.

Photo Credit: Spencer Baldwin

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