Atlanta United scored a pair of late goals in the final moments of the match to complete a come-from-behind 3-2 victory over Orlando City SC Wednesday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Alexey Miranchuk, Bartosz Slisz, and Jamal Thiaré each scored to hand the club its second consecutive win at home as the team now faces its next six matches on the road.
Orlando jumped out to an early lead in the fourth minute. Martín Ojeda received the ball in the left channel and played it to Marco Pašalic at the top of the penalty area roughly 25 yards from goal. Pašalic settled the ball with his first touch as César Araújo ran on to it and blasted a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner.
Atlanta responded in short order, netting an equalizer in the 19th minute. The play began with Jay Fortune making an interception on the left side in Orlando’s half before Slisz and Miranchuk quickly worked the ball across the field to Saba Lobjanidze on the right wing. The Georgian dribbled into the box and fired a low cross to the edge of the six-yard box, which deflected off Miguel Almirón’s boot and appeared to strike an Orlando defender’s hand. The ball immediately bounced to Miranchuk, who smashed home a volley to level the match. It was Miranchuk’s second goal of the season.
The visitors regained the lead in the 32nd minute. Ojeda lobbed a long ball over the head of Derrick Williams with Ramiro Enrique chasing. Williams’ attempted back pass wasn’t hit with enough pace as Enrique pounced on the loose ball and buried his shot into the bottom left corner.
The match reached its turning point when head coach Ronny Deila made a triple substitution in the 68th minute, bringing on Pedro Amador, Mateusz Klich, and Jamal Thiaré. Amador immediately made his presence felt in the 70th minute when Fortune picked out a pass from the right wing to the back post, where the Portuguese volleyed a shot aimed at the top right corner, but it soared just over the bar.
We understood what caused us to get three points against Cincinnati, everybody was working and fighting for each other, confident and what not and we knew that if we wanted to get something close to that same result, we required the same work. It was important that we fought from start to finish, and we did that today, which was able to get us three points.”
Atlanta United midfielder Jay Fortune on the message heading into the match
Atlanta gained a one-man advantage in the 77th minute when Araújo was shown a red card after putting a hand on Klich’s throat during a heated moment after a play was whistled dead.
Six minutes later, Atlanta pulled level for the second time. After an Amador cross intended for Thiaré was cleared away, it fell for Miranchuk on the top right edge of the penalty area. Miranchuk played a short pass for Slisz just outside the box, where he drilled a shot off the left post and into the back of the net.
Atlanta continued to threaten Orlando’s goal and found the match-winner in the 95th minute. Miranchuk delivered a cross to the left side of the box for Lobjanidze, where he chested it down and played it across to Thiaré for the tap-in. It was goal number three for the season.
“[Jamal Thiare] is so important. He comes on, and even though he could maybe be disappointed not to start, he puts the team before himself, and when he goes, he is so dangerous,” Atlanta United head coach Ronny Deila began about the play of Thiaré in the past two matches. “It is good to see, and it is also just a matter of time before (Latte Lath) starts scoring also, and then we are going to be even better.”
A few key stats after tonight’s win: goalkeeper Brad Guzan made his 250th appearance for the club across all competitions, Bartosz Slisz scored his second goal of the season, Saba Lobjanidze leads the team with six assists this season, and Miranchuk became the first club player with three goal contributions in a single match since March 9, 2024.
Atlanta United (4-7-5, 17 points) returns to action Saturday, May 31, when it travels to face New York Red Bulls at Sports Illustrated 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.