Two early goals set Atlanta United behind in 2-1 loss at New England Revolution

Atlanta United’s two-game win streak ends after Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat against New England Revolution.

The loss drops Atlanta to 6th in the Eastern Conference with 35 points in 23 games and a 9-8-6 record.

An unchanged XI stepped onto the pitch at Gillette Stadium for this match in the same 3-4-2-1 formation that had earned the Five Stripes two consecutive clean-sheet victories. Giorgos Giakoumakis, who had been upgraded to “questionable” status during the week, did not feature in the squad.

It took a mere four minutes for the hosts to open the scoring after Matt Polster let a shot rip from outside the box that Guzan had no chance of getting to. Despite Atlanta coming out of the gate with great intensity, it found itself behind early 1-0.

Five minutes later, the Revs doubled the lead after a turnover near New England’s box resulted in a quick counterattack. Carles Gil played a perfect through ball to Giacomo Vrioni who easily got around Guzan to put it in the back of the net. With under 10 minutes on the clock, the Five Stripes were now behind 2-0.

Atlanta United got some gears turning toward the end of the first half and nearly found a route back into the game with a few Thiago Almada shots that came very close to going in. The Five Stripes posted four shots on target out of eight in the first half but weren’t able to affect the score.

The consolation goal would come from Machop Chol in stoppage time after he beat Andrew Farrell in the box and blasted the ball past Djorde Petrovic to get one on the scoreboard before the end. Shortly after, the referee blew his whistle and the match ended with a 2-1 final score.

The Five Stripes continued creating in the second half, posting an additional 17 shots with 7 on target. Atlanta was a little unlucky not to score for most of the game after being constantly denied by Petrovic’s heroics. Nevertheless, it was some very poor defending that set Atlanta back early and ultimately cost it the match.

Atlanta United’s next match is Saturday, July 15th when it faces Orlando City SC in Mercedes-Benz Stadium at 7:30 pm.

What did you think of the match? Let us know in the comments below.