After suffering a hamstring injury in a 3-1 home victory against Sporting Kansas City during MLS is Back weekend, Atlanta United winger Luiz Araujo is scheduled to be out for four weeks, the team confirmed Tuesday.
The 25-year-old Brazilian scored the first goal of his Major League Soccer career in a 3-1 victory over Kansas City on Sunday. Josef Martinez sent an over-the-shoulder pass to Araujo, who curled the ball into the bottom left corner of the net. The celebrations were cut short as the winger was spotted walking along the side of the pitch, calling for a substitution.
Araujo came up hobbling after holding his right hamstring after sending the ball into the net in the 20th minute. He tried to stay in the game, but only for a short time before collapsing in obvious anguish on the ground. Hamstring injury is quite common in the game of soccer but the effects on the team can never be accurately predicted.
Araujo moved to United from Lille in the French Ligue 1 in August. In 2021, he scored four goals in 14 MLS appearances, assisting Atlanta to the playoffs.
It’s a big loss for the Five Stripes since Araujo is a major part of head coach Gonzalo Pineda’s offense. Last summer, the Brazilian joined Atlanta as a Designated Player from Lille in Ligue 1, where he scored four goals and added four assists in 15 games in 2021.
After Araujo’s departure, Dwyer put up a strong performance, scoring a highlight-reel goal in first-half stoppage time, marking the veteran forward’s first MLS goal since 2019. While Araujo is absent, Dwyer could be in line for a bigger role. Brooks Lennon, Tyler Wolff, and Marcelino Moreno are all candidates to fill the void.
Thiago Almada, a highly regarded offseason signing, should help carry the weight once the 20-year-old Argentine arrives after resolving visa concerns.
The team will be back in action on Saturday when they travel to Colorado to face the Rapids. Let’s see how well they’ll do without one player who is a major part of the Head Coach’s offense.
