Atlanta United fell 2-0 to Nashville SC on Saturday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Nashville’s goals came from Alex Muyl and Hany Mukhtar. Atlanta United midfielder Alexey Miranchuk made his second start tonight, his first in front of the home crowd in Atlanta.
Nashville was on the front foot early and capitalized in the opening minutes. Alex Muyl initiated the goal by sprinting to the end line on the left flank before switching the field for Shaq Moore, who crossed the ball back towards the far post. Moore’s ball met the head of Sam Surridge before falling back to the feet of Muyl who volleyed in the ball from close range.
Atlanta’s first shot on target came 10 minutes into the contest after Miranchuk slid the ball to the left wing for Xande Silva. The Portuguese winger played a one-two with Jay Fortune while drifting inside to take a right-footed shot but his attempt was saved by Nashville’s Joe Willis. The score remained 1-0 in favor of the visitors at halftime.
After the break, Colombian winger Edwin Mosquera carved out a scoring opportunity for the 5-Stripes. Mosquera challenged his defender on the left side by going 1 v 1 to create space and send a cross into the box. Mexican forward Ríos connected on the service but his header was saved.
“They played with intensity, they played fast and aggressive, they played like they had something to lose. In the first five minutes of the game, we didn’t get out of our own half.”
Atlanta United Interim Manager Rob Valentino on what Nashville did right
Saba Lobjanidze took advantage of a misplaced Nashville pass at half field in the 66th minute, intercepting the ball and dribbling around his defender to spearhead a counterattack. The Georgian midfielder made his way to the penalty area before laying it off on the right side for Ríos to launch a shot that rang off the near post.
Nashville doubled its lead in the 76th minute from Hany Mukhtar. The German midfielder ran the length of the pitch and slipped a pass for Bunbury in the 18-yard box, who laid it back to Mukhtar with a backheel pass and the midfielder chipped it in with his left foot.
With tonight’s loss, Atlanta United sit two points (31) behind D.C. United (33) for the last playoff spot in the eastern conference of Major League Soccer. There are six matches remaining in the regular season.
Atlanta United (8-13-7, 31 points) returns to action Wednesday, September 18 when it hosts Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (7:30 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