A three-match homestand that began with a bang for Atlanta United ended with a whimper Saturday afternoon in a 1-0 conference loss to New England Revolution. Two Atlanta United goals were called back because of offsides, including a Miguel Almirón golazo, so the difference was a penalty kick from New England’s Carles Gil, and Atlanta United dropped points at home for the second time this season.
Atlanta United wraps this home stretch with a win, a draw and Saturday's loss, taking four points out of a possible nine.
Final score: Atlanta United 0, New England Revolution 1
What happened: The two Eastern Conference sides traded chances all throughout the first half. Six shots were taken in the opening 15 minutes of play. Atlanta’s best chance early on was in the fifth minute. The team crossed the ball, from one side then the other, back and forth several times. The sequence resulted in a Saba Lobjanidze header attempt.
Atlanta United had a golden opportunity in the 17th minute. Playing out of the back, the home team moved the ball forward quickly. Almirón worked with Latte Lath up the middle, and finally the midfielder set up Atlanta's leading scorer for a shot in range. Latte Lath’s strike was firm and required a save from New England goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic.
It appeared Atlanta United scored the first goal of the afternoon in the 28th minute when Almirón curled a golazo from the top of the 18-yard box with his left foot. The beautiful finish brought the supporters inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium to their feet as they roared for their beloved No. 10 in black and red. As the applause was still going and both teams were lining up for the ensuing kickoff, officials called for a VAR check. They determined Pedro Amador was offisdes on the play, which meant Almirón's goal did not count.
The goal would've been monumental for Almirón and broken his tie with Thiago Almada for second place all-time in regular season scoring for the club. Brooks Lennon would've also been credited with the assist. This is now the second time Lennon's milestone moment to become the all-time assist leader for the club was called back due to offsides.
But it was New England that opened the scoring in the 36th minute. The visitors were awarded a penalty kick when the 2021 Landon Donovan MVP Carles Gil drew a foul. The Spanish midfielder took the PK for New England and converted, making it 1-0.
Carles Gil now has three of New England's four goals on the season.
Head coach Ronny Deila made a halftime substitution, replacing starter Saba Lobjanidze for Noah Cobb. Sending on a defender also brought a tactical switch and Atlanta United began the second half with a backline of five.
Atlanta looked motivated to find the equalizer out of the halftime break, and they nearly scored right out of the gate. After a nifty backheeled shot from Alexey Miranchuk in tight space, Atlanta United earned a corner kick. Stian Gregersen, leaning back, headed the ball down. Latte Lath was in the area and got his laces on it, shooting the ball into the net. However, the striker was ruled offsides and, once again, the goal was disallowed. The scoreline remained 1-0 in favor of New England.
Jamal Thiaré provided a jolt of energy off the bench, and he nearly scored in the 85th minute just moments after subbing on. Miranchuk chipped a left-footed cross. Thiaré connected and his header clanged off the post. Atlanta United recycled the play, and Almirón followed it up with an acrobatic attempt, but Miggy's shot went right into the clenched fists of Ivacic, who batted it down.
Key Stat: 18. That's the number of shots Atlanta United took against New England, the most on the season. Like the FC Dallas match, it was a day of missed opportunities as Atlanta United couldn't make the most out of their chances.
Atlanta United's attacking numbers across the board show the looks they were getting. Atlanta United made 22 total crosses and took nine corner kicks, essentially putting the ball into dangerous zones more than 30 times.
Atlanta's expected goals on the day were 2.8 compared to 1.8 for the Revs, per MLSSoccer.com. To come away without a goal is a frustrating result for a team that prides itself on playing fast, exciting, attack-minded football. Atlanta United has now been held scoreless in three straight halves and has not scored in open play since March 29 against New York City FC.
Quoting head coach Ronny Deila:
"It's frustrating that we don’t get more. That we don't take our chances and get more goals out of them because that is what we deserve. Nobody can watch that match and say that we deserved to have zero goals.”
Standout: With a total of 30 shots taken on the day, 12 on target, Saturday was a showcase in goalkeeping. Brad Guzan shined for Atlanta United and finished the match with six saves, tying his season high. New England's goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic put on a strong performance as well making several diving stops to keep a clean sheet for the Revs.
Guzan came up with three saves early in the match, including when Carles Gil took a shot beyond the 18-yard box in the ninth minute. Later, Guzan saved another attempt from Carles Gil, a floater that tried to sneak under the crossbar, and Atlanta’s big, bald wall punched it over for a goal kick. Perhaps one of the trickiest stops was in the 23rd when a shot from the Revs took a deceiving deflection. Guzan reacted quickly to stop the ball from creeping in near post.
In the second half, Guzan manned the side of the pitch that featured a sliver of sunlight from the open roof at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Battling the glare didn’t faze the veteran, and he operated and commanded the backline while shielding his eyes. He made a huge play in second-half stoppage time when Leo Campana had more than half the field ahead of him on a breakaway with only Guzan to beat. Atlanta's goalkeeper, with some help from Mateusz Klich who sprinted back to track down Campana, won that battle and denied the attempt.
Milestones:
- Xande Silva made his 50th appearance for Atlanta United across all competitions, entering as a sub in the 73rd minute.
- Brad Guzan tied his season-high with six saves.
Up next: Atlanta United now hits the road for back-to-back Eastern Conference meetings. First, the 5-Stripes travel to Subaru Park to take on Philadelphia Union on April 19. A week after that, Atlanta United heads to familiar territory in Florida to face Orlando City SC in a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Semifinals.
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