Though a man-down for a majority of the match, Atlanta United battled the below-freezing temperatures as they fought for a 1-0 victory in Minnesota on Saturday night, marking their third-straight win of the season. (credit Atlanta United)
Coldest Night
The 10-man Atlanta United put on a determined performance in frigid conditions to grind out a big win on the road. A year ago, the first meeting between the 2017 expansion class was a blowout win in the snow for Atlanta. There was no snow this time, instead the game time temperature at kick-off in TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis was 18° with wind-chill in the single digits. While not as visually striking as playing in the snow, it was a new MLS record of the coldest match in league history.
Atlanta United Head Coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino commented on the impact of the weather, “Both teams had to play in the same weather, so we each had to adapt to that. It’s a game that we’re leaving here with three points and that’s the important thing. It’s not a game that we’re going to remember for how well we played, but it’s a game that we’re going to remember for getting a result.”
The key incident in the match happened in the 38th minute when Atlanta defender Leandro González Pirez was sent off after receiving his second yellow card of the first half. Atlanta played the remaining 52 minutes plus another 8+ minutes of stoppage time down a player . Goalkeeper Brad Guzan made three saves, including a key stop in the 68th minute on MNUFC midfielder Ethan Finlay from six yards out to help preserve the first clean-sheet of the 2018 season. The Atlanta defense was in top form, playing tight and compact, they withstood 50 crosses from the Loons and tallied 58 clearances on the night.
Ugliest Win
When asked if this may be the ugliest win in the short history of Atlanta United, Martino said “Probably.” But went on to clarify, “I also don’t want to undermine the effort that the guys put in tonight because I wouldn’t be doing justice to the team. We don’t only want to win when we’re able to play well. It’s great if we’re able to play well and win, but we also know we need to be able to get results.”
While it was not pretty, Atlanta United defender Chris McCann focused on the result, “Yea I think it was just purely because of the conditions that we faced. It was just wave after wave of attack and defend, but we left everything out there. We headed, we tackled. Everybody did their part. It’s a massive three points. It’s great for team spirit to get wins like that, and it brings everyone together in the changing room. You can see how much it meant to the guys at the final whistle.”
Scoring
The only scoring happened early, when the match was wide open and end to end. In the 2nd minute, Atlanta forward Hector “Tito” Villalba cut inside the box and struck a powerful low shot which force a diving save from Minnesota goalkeeper Matt Lampson. From the ensuing corner, Julian Gressel whipped a low curving kick in the box forced Lampson to bat it away. The ball ricocheted around the Minnesota box with a header from Villalba going off the top of the goal post. It finally bounced off of Loons defender Francisco Calvo and trickled in for an own goal.
Calvo own goal. Atlanta takes a 1-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/FJ4w5LVvRs
— Total MLS (@TotalMLS) April 1, 2018
Personnel Details
Two players for Atlanta United made their debuts, Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu and Sal Zizzo. Wheeler-Omiunu was drafted by Atlanta in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft in the third round with the No. 46 overall selection. Zizzo has now appeared for five MLS teams in his career.
In only the third meeting between the two clubs, this is the second time Atlanta United has gone down a man due to red card situations. Last season, Atlanta goalkeeper Kyle Reynish was sent off during Minnesota’s 3-2 win on Oct. 3, 2017. Another oddity is the fact that Brad Guzan became the fourth Atlanta United goalkeeper to face Minnesota United. Alec Kann started during Atlanta’s 6-1 win on March 12, 2017. Alex Tambakis subbed for Reynish and played 28 minutes after Reynish was sent off.
Up Next
ATL: Saturday, April 7 vs. LAFC 5:00 pm ET
MIN: Saturday, April 14 at Portland Timbers 10:30 pm ET
Atlanta United FC
