Atlanta United vs. Montreal
Atlanta United Downs Montreal 4-1
Atlanta Clinches Playoff Spot
Atlanta Latinos Magazine – Atlanta United is back. The new additions from the transfer window are paying dividends, as the offense has clicked the past few games. Tonight was no different. With the roof open at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta United thrashed CF Montreal 4-1.
Atlanta scored first. In the 30’, Xande Silva found the back of the net. It was Silva’s second goal with Atlanta. Both Saba Lobjanidze and Giorgos Giakoumakis were credited with assists.
Atlanta did not wait long to record its second goal. Three minutes later Thiago Almada scored a goal, giving him ten for the season. Almada becomes the third player in Atlanta United history to score 10+ goals and assists in a season. The other two were Tito Villalba and Miguel Almiron. Assists were credited to Silva and Caleb Wiley.
Montreal did answer in the 40’. Ahmed Hamdi notched his first goal of the season with assists from Lassi Lappalainen and Joel Waterman.
United would quickly tack on a third goal right after halftime. Giakoumakis pounced on a Montreal mistake by stealing a back pass and quickly depositing it into the back of the net. It was the 15th goal of the season for him, keeping him in a three-way tie for the MLS lead and golden boot award.
Atlanta tacked on a fourth and final goal in the 89’. Edwin Mosquera blasted one past the goalkeeper for his second goal of the season. He was set up by a beautiful pass from Almada, who added to his league leading total of 16 assists.
Atlanta United dominated time of possession 64% to 36%. Goalkeeper Brad Guzan had a strong game between the pipes, making two saves. The two center back defenders, Miles Robinson and Luis Abram, were stout.
With this result, Atlanta moved into a four-way tie for third place with 49 points in the Eastern Conference standings. With tiebreakers, that places 5th overall. Each of the other teams has at least one game in hand, although two of those teams will play Atlanta head-to-head in the final weeks of the season.
Atlanta’s next match is away against Philadelphia Union on Wednesday, October 4th.
Notes…Jamal Thiaré made his first appearance for Atlanta, entering the match in the 82’…former Atlanta defender George Campbell made his return to the Benz, starting for Montreal and playing the first half…Montreal’s Joel Waterman received a red card in the 87’ for fouling on a goal scoring opportunity…attendance was announced as 42,569.
