[Note: My apologies for the audio, as Dave sounded great and I did not. Unbeknownst to me, everything was running through my external laptop microphone, so I come off a bit echoey. Longtime listeners may find that nostalgiac, taking them back to the first few seasons of the show, but to me it's no fun, and I apologize for the audio quality.]

Orlando City comes out of the international break with their most troublesome rival standing between the Lions and a spot in the Eastern Conference final. The Lions will host Atlanta United Sunday in the most meaningful matchup between the clubs to date, having been swept in the season series and only having four victories all-time in the series.

Nevertheless, Orlando City must play the team that is on the schedule next, and it's sure to be a feisty battle.

Without a game to recap, we jump right into this week's mailbagbox, which asks us a difficult question about our playoff preference and offers up another walkout song possibility we didn't come up with last week. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

After we finished going through our mail, we dove into the matchup with Atlanta United, giving the series history, the tale of the tape, and our key matchups and predictions for the match. It was a shorter show than usual, but if the Lions get through to the conference final, you're sure to get a longer one next week.

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we'll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

Here’s how No. 456 went down:

0:45 – It's a rarity as we open with the mailbagbox!

14:58 – Atlanta United stands in the way and there could hardly be a more difficult opponent (historically speaking) for the Lions to face. Nevertheless, they must do so, and they must find a way to win in order to host the conference final. 

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