Atlanta United vs. Inter Miami
Match Ends In 2-2 Draw
Messi Plays 30 Minutes
Atlanta Latinos Magazine – With the roof open, Atlanta United faced off against league leading Inter Miami Wednesday night at Mercedes Benz Stadium. Atlanta needed a result, as it remains just outside a playoff spot with five matches remaining. And Atlanta got a point on a 2-2 draw, in what turned out to be a dramatic back-and-forth ending.
However, the lead story was Lionel Messi. Miami’s midfielder and one of the greatest soccer players of all time, made his Mercedes Benz debut. Many of the fans, wearing his various jerseys, were there to see him. He received cheers for just warming up. He received a raucous welcome when he entered the game in the 60’. Every time he touched the ball, fans cheered in anticipation of what he might do.
Miami scored the first goal. In the 29’, David Ruiz split the defense and was able to bang home the first goal of the night. It was his first goal of the season.
Early in the second half, Atlanta tied the match 1-1 with a header by Saba Lobjanidze that went right through the goalkeeper’s legs. It was Saba’s team leading seventh goal of the season. Assists were given to Pedro Amador and Dax McCarty.
But it didn’t take Miami long to strike back and re-take the lead. In the 59’, Leo Campana scored a goal on a free kick that deflected off an Atlanta defender.
With a 2-1 lead, Messi entered the match. At that point, the energy in the building, both the fans and players, picked up. The biggest beneficiary of the energy was Atlanta United. The team became more aggressive.
And in the 84’, Alexey Miranchuk drilled home an absolute banger from outside the box. It marked his first goal with his new team. Brooks Lennon earned his seventh assist, tied for most on the team.
From there, the match got more spread out and more wide open. Atlanta’s defense was able to contain Messi, while its offense blasted shot after shot at the goal, barely missing on numerous occasions. After six minutes of stoppage time, the whistle blew, and the match ended in a 2-2 draw.
After an anemic first half with zero shots on goal, Atlanta finally showed signs of life in the later stages of the match. Although pleased with the strong finish, Atlanta’s manager Rob Valentino expressed his displeasure with the poor effort in the first half. “That’s every day. That’s every day at training. That’s every single day behaviors over a consistent period of time, and then that gets you far. You can’t just turn it on and off.” He went on to say that “the fans need a massive thank you because they showed up regardless of whom came to play against us.”
Atlanta hits the road for a match against New York Red Bulls on Saturday, September 21.
Notes…Inter Miami entered the league with the most points in all of MLS, as it looks to secure the Supporters Shield…Atlanta dropped to 11th place in the Eastern Conference standings, two spots and one point out of a playoff spot…Atlanta has five matches to make a playoff push…attendance was announced as 67,795.
