CHESTER, Pa. (April 10, 2025) - Atlanta United 2 fell 5-1 to Philadelphia Union II on the road Thursday night at Subaru Park. Javier Armas made his first start since returning from injury and scored his first goal of the season in the 85th minute.
In the third minute, Atlanta took off on a counter attack for its first chance of the game. Armas won the ball in his own half and chipped the backline toward Ryan Carmichael just past midfield. Carmichael was one-on-one down the middle, but goalkeeper Oliver Semmle was high-off his line to clear. Cayman Togashi attempted to lob the rebound into the empty net, but it went out for a goal kick.
Philadelphia broke the deadlock in the 21st minute. David Vazquez received the ball on the left wing with space, and his chip into the box met Stas Korzeniowski. The six-foot-four striker leapt over everyone and looped a header over Jayden Hibbert.
Atlanta looked for an immediate response and almost had it through Togashi. Nyk Sessock played a deep cross into Rodrigo Neri, and his quick touch met Togashi just inside the top of the 18-yard box. The Japanese striker shot toward the bottom-left corner, but Semmle pushed it wide.
Philadelphia extended its lead just before halftime. CJ Olney found space on the left wing and curled a cross into the box. Hibbert stepped out in an attempt to punch the ball away, but Neil Pierre beat him to it with a diving header into the back of the net.
In the 55th minute, Dominik Chong Qui fouled his opponent inside his own half, and received his second yellow card. Atlanta played the remaining 35 minutes down a man.
Togashi had another opportunity in the 64th minute. Armas played a ball down the center, and the striker touched toward goal, but two defenders crashed on Togashi before he could take the shot.
Atlanta pressed for a goal, but Philadelphia took advantage of the extra man with three goals in six minutes. Olney, Nick Pariano and Kellen LeBlanc all found the back of the net.
In the 85th minute, substitute Patrick Weah came in to make an immediate impact. The Liberian received a through ball on the left side and touched around his defender inside the box before being tripped and drawing a penalty kick. Armas stepped up and calmly sent Semmle the wrong way to finish low in the right corner.
Atlanta United 2 (1-2-2, 5 points) returns to action Wednesday, April 23 when it hosts Carolina Core FC at Fifth Third Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET, MLSNEXTPro.com, Soccer Down Here). Some ATL UTD 2 matches are available with an MLS Season Pass subscription, located on the Apple TV app while the remainder of matches are streamed live on MLSNEXTPro.com.
