Atlanta United fell to FC Cincinnati 1-0 Wednesday night at TQL Stadium. An early FC Cincinnati goal from Kevin Kelsy was the difference in the match. Jay Fortune made his first start of the season for Atlanta while Dax McCarty made his second.
FC Cincinnati jumped in front early from a broken play in Atlanta’s half. Luciano Acosta gathered a loose ball from a blocked shot near the end line and found Kevin Kelsy at the back post. The striker headed in Acosta’s cross for the easy 1-0 lead in the 7th minute.
Just a few minutes later, Atlanta was forced to make a substitution in the 16th minute, bringing on Xande Silva for Thiago Almada, who injured his left calf. The two sides played an even final half hour in the first half with Atlanta getting its best chance from an attempt from Giorgos Giakoumakis in the 34th minute that forced a save from Roman Celentano. After the match, Gonzalo Pineda told us what he knew about the injuries to his two biggest stars.
“I don’t have a lot of information yet. I think Thiago felt something in his calf in the warmup, he felt that he was super, super tight and couldn’t even sprint. We have to do some tests and evaluations and we’ll see after that. Giorgos was pointing to his hamstring; I don’t know the extent of that. He bravely stayed in the game, trying to get us something. One time I had a bad experience with Caleb (Wiley) in a friendly match, I preferred to take him out not to risk him. He was out after that, we had to do similar evaluations.”
In Atlanta’s last five matches they’ve suffered four losses and produced a draw. Their last win was a U.S. Open Cup contest against the Charlotte Independence. After tonight’s match, the five stripes sit in 12th place in the eastern conference standings.
“We need to draw a line after tonight,” said Atlanta United goalkeeper Brad Guzan. “The performances have to be better. Even the little things that go into a game. This has got to be the low point and we’ve got to look forward. It starts with Saturday.”
Atlanta United (3-6-3, 12 points) returns to action Saturday, May 18 when it travels to face Nashville SC at Geodis Park (1:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass, 92.9 The Game, La Mejor). All Atlanta United matches are available with an MLS Season Pass subscription, located on the Apple TV app.
-Jon Jones
Photo: Courtesy of ATL UTD