Atlanta United defeated D.C. United 1-0 Saturday night at Audi Field as Marcelino Moreno scored the game-winning goal late into second-half stoppage time to give Atlanta its first road victory of the season.
Four minutes into stoppage time, Brooks Lennon delivered a corner kick from the right side into the box where Moreno headed the ball across goal and into the lower corner. It was Moreno’s first goal of the season and Lennon’s first assist. It also marks the third consecutive game that Atlanta has scored a goal in second-half stoppage time and the second time to win a match.
Atlanta managed to control 57 percent of possession in a physical match that saw DC commit 20 fouls. D.C. created a chance in the first half from Nigel Robertha as the forward beat his defender and made a run into the right side of the box, but his shot to the near post was saved by Brad Guzan. Guzan made two saves on the night as Atlanta recorded its first clean sheet of the year.
Thiago Almada made his first start for the club and had his free-kick saved by Bill Hamid in the 39th minute as Atlanta continued to put pressure on D.C. in the final minutes of the first half. After a D.C. giveaway in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time, Jake Mulraney played Matheus Rossetto into the box where he blasted a right-footed strike on goal to force a diving save from Bill Hamid.
Santiago Sosa came on at halftime for Rossetto and Gonzalo Pineda made a double substitution in the 62nd minute as Franco Ibarra and Jackson Conway came on for Ozzie Alonso and Josef Martínez. Miles Robinson came on for Jake Mulraney in the 74th minute as Atlanta switched to a backline with three center backs.
[Atlanta United manager Gonzalo Pineda comments on what grabbing points late says about the team]: “I think it says a lot. It says about our team that we don’t give up. Last year, I remember, we gave up a lot of points at the end of the games and now we’re doing completely the opposite. That for me is a massive achievement because it’s not something that comes on its own.“
Atlanta (3-1-1, 10 points) returns to action Sunday, April 10 when it travels to face Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium (1:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN Deportes, Sports Radio 92-9 The Game, La Mejor).
-Jon Jones
Photo: Courtesy of ATL UTD
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