Atlanta United snaps draw streak with 3-1 home victory over DC United

Atlanta United ended a streak of four draws with a 3-1 win over DC United on Saturday.

The win ups Atlanta’s point total to 28 in 18 games and a 7-7-4 record.

Ajani Fortune made his first MLS start against the Black and Red and Caleb Wiley returned to the starting lineup after his participation in the FIFA U20 World Cup. Osvaldo Alonso also returned to the matchday squad for the first time in 14 months since his ACL tear which he coincidentally sustained against DC United.

Noticeably absent from the lineup was midfielder Matheus Rossetto. Atlanta United communications staff said he was left out because of a coaching decision, not an injury.

Atlanta United opened the scoring early after DC United goalkeeper Tyler Miller came out too far to claim a long ball over the top and was punished by Giorgos Giakoumakis who calmly placed it perfectly to put the Five Stripes ahead in the 13th minute. The goal is his 10th this season, putting him in a tie for first place in the MLS Golden Boot race.

Atlanta continued to exert pressure and pushed for a second, but a careless mistake from a corner kick led to a terrible giveaway that allowed Taxiarchis Fountas to get in a one-on-one against Brad Guzan and level the game. The two teams were tied at one 27 minutes in.

Having gone to the break with a draw, the Five Stripes looked to reestablish the lead. They’d get it back in the 49th minute after Thiago Almada played a perfectly weighted through ball into the box for Andrew Gutman who scored his third goal this season to give Atlanta a 2-1 lead.

Things would get better for Atlanta in the 73rd minute when Tyler Wolff buried a cross that came across the face of the goal. The goal was initially disallowed due to an offside, but a VAR check overturned the original decision and saw the Five Stripes take a 3-1 lead.

After being shut out for the first time this season, Atlanta United responded with a great attacking display to delight the fans and put another in the win column. Fortune looked really solid in his first MLS start. He looked sharp on the ball and was constantly looking for ways to play the ball forward rather than default to safe back passes. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but Jay sure is showing promise.

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