Indy Eleven 2-0 ATL UTD 2 recap: 2s still searching for first away win

ATL UTD 2 remained without a victory away from Coolray Field as they were shutout by USL newcomer Indy Eleven, 2-0, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. After a scoreless draw at Tampa Bay last week, Atlanta couldn’t parlay that into back-to-back road results.

The Eleven enjoyed the better of the play to open the game and throughout the entire evening. They broke through just before the half-hour mark as veteran Matt Watson pounced on a Chris Goslin turnover, drawing keeper Paul Christensen out of goal on a break and finding the open net to put Indy up 1-0. In the 55th, a flying header from an unmarked Carlyle Mitchell off of a corner kick doubled the margin in Indy’s favor.

ATL UTD 2 could show nothing more than a few flashes throughout the match, but they were unable to seriously challenge Indy keeper Owain Fon Williams as the Welshman was forced into making just one save despite seven Atlanta shots. It was the third match without a goal for Atlanta on a night where its scoreless drought reached over 300 minutes.

ATL UTD 2 had to navigate the final 52 minutes of the match without captain Jack Metcalf, who exited after an apparent leg injury. We’ll have to see what the prognosis is when the club returns home to prepare for a pair of matches against the Charlotte Independence (Wednesday) and Ottawa Fury (Saturday). Both matches kick off at 7pm at Coolray Field in Gwinnett County.

ATL UTD 2 Starting XI: Paul Christensen, Jose Hernandez, A.J. Cochran, Andrew Kendall-Moullin, Jack Metcalf (C), Ollie Shannon, Laurent Kissiedou, Chris Goslin, Jose Carranza, Yosef Samuel, Jon Gallagher

Bench: Nico Caraux, Carlos Asensio, Kevin Barajas, Shawn Nicklaw, Devon Sandoval, Dylan Gaither

Substitutions: Nicklaw 38’ (Metcalf); Sandoval 61’ (Goslin); Barajas 80’ (Samuel)