Five thoughts on D.C. United being comically bad at soccer and Atlanta United winning big

Atlanta United absolutely dumptrucked D.C. United on Saturday night to the tune of a resounding 4-0 win. The Five Stripes completely outclassed probably the worst team in the league and looked damn good while doing it. While it’s impossible to take too much from this shellacking, here are a few thoughts on an incredibly fun night.

• After a season full of embarrassments and misery can we take a minute to acknowledge just how good it feels to be on the other end of one of these performances for once? Sure, Ben Olsen’s side is a glorified USL team at best, but that doesn’t negate the joy of watching this Atlanta United team dismantle them for 90 minutes. It almost felt like old times a bit with how much fun the players were having out of the field. Maybe not the dominance of 2018, but the free-flowing, caution-to-the-wind vibes of 2017. We need more of that around these parts.

• The wing play from Atlanta in this match was simply phenomenal. Brooks Lennon and Jon Gallagher may have to split Man of the Match honors for their individual performances. Lennon put on his best Julian Gressel impression by delivering amazing service into the box all night, assisting on two goals and he could’ve had a least one more. Not to mention his fantastic left-footed golazo. It was an emphatic performance from the right flank for the former Liverpool academy attacker. The superlatives are much of the same for Gallagher who continues to shine this season and prove he deserves to be a part of this team for 2021.
• The third goal. I don’t even even know what to say. This is all I can come up with:

• This is Atlanta’s second great performance in their last three matches. The key now is to figure out how to string these together. It obviously won’t be easy with Orlando City and the New York Red Bulls coming up. They’ll need to find a way to start getting results against the good teams if they have designs on getting into the playoffs this season. Perhaps the inclusion of Marcelino Moreno and maybe Ezequiel Barco in the coming weeks can help matters even more.
• Good lord D.C. United are truly horrible. Let’s all sit back and appreciate Atlanta United’s decision makers for making sure this club is never mired in that much mediocrity for such a long period of time. I honestly feel terrible for their fans.