ATLANTA — Inter Miami and Lionel Messi are now one loss from elimination in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Forward Xande Silva’s 95th-minute goal lifted Atlanta United to a shocking 2-1 win at home Saturday in front of 68,455. Mercedes-Benz Stadium turned into a raucous atmosphere familiar to anyone who watched the team’s early years, which had formed Atlanta into a soccer city.
At one point during the regular season, Atlanta had just a 4% chance to sneak into the playoffs. It made it to the postseason, won the play-in game and gave Miami everything it had in the first game of the best-of-three series. On Saturday night, United battled back from a one-goal deficit to pull even on a diving header from Derrick Williams in the 58th minute.
As the game opened up in the final minutes, the stretched affair started to lean toward the home team. Saba Lobjanidze had an overhead effort clang off the crossbar in the 89th minute, getting the crowd on their feet. Messi was clearly offside a few minutes later when he headed the ball past goalkeeper Brad Guzan into the net. Less than a minute later, Atlanta United was going the other way and Silva buried a shot from the top of the box into the upper corner.
XANDE SILVA DID 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧. WE’RE GOING TO GAME 3.#UniteThe404 x #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/aI9v9fjvMN
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) November 3, 2024
The first-round playoff series will now head back to Miami next Saturday in a win-or-go-home matchup.
Paul Tenorio and Felipe Cardenas were in the building to break down the key moments of Saturday’s playoff match.
Recovering from an early mistake
Guzan kept Atlanta United in the game for much of last week’s 2-1 loss to Inter Miami in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The former U.S. men’s national team goalkeeper came up with several huge saves that made the result more uncomfortable than it otherwise would have been for Messi and Co. The result led to a few headlines praising the former Aston Villa keeper’s throwback performance.
On Saturday night, in front of a home crowd, though, Guzan made a massive gaffe that led to Inter Miami’s opener.
Guzan collected a ball in the 40th minute and went to punt it down the field. But as he went to hit the ball, it seemed that the 40-year-old caught a glimpse of Miami’s Federico Redondo jogging by him and hesitated to swing his leg thinking he might connect with the midfielder. Redondo, though, never took a final step to interfere and Guzan just dropped the ball. Redondo turned and passed the loose ball across to center back Hector Martinez, who chipped it past stunned Atlanta Udefenders and into the open net for a 1-0 Miami lead.
Así la picó David Martínez 😮💨 Primer gol del paraguayo con el club 💗🖤👏 pic.twitter.com/4Lp6cdELI0
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) November 2, 2024
Guzan pleaded to the referee to call a foul for interference by Redondo, but replays showed the midfielder had not even attempted to touch the ball, though it did appear that Redondo took a heavy step toward Guzan just as the goalkeeper went to punt it — just enough action to mess with Guzan’s mind, but not enough to earn a foul call.
Guzan held the ball in his box as both teams prepared for a kickoff, hoping maybe video review would grant him reprieve. It didn’t, and Miami took an unlikely lead on the unlikeliest of goals.
(Dale Zanine / Imagn Images)
Honoring Dax McCarty’s career
It’s tradition now that starting players walk out for anthems holding the hand of a young child – a chance for the adorable mascots to get an up-close moment with their heroes.
On Saturday, MLS veteran Dax McCarty held the hand of his eldest son, Cal, as he walked out and lifted his youngest, Owen, into his arms as Atlanta United walked out for the game. The central midfielder announced earlier this year that he would retire at the end of the season. Saturday was potentially the final game of one of the most industrious and consistent careers in league history.
McCarty came off in the 71st minute and raised his hands over his head to applaud. It was nearly an unceremonious end for a player who often went under-appreciated for his dirty work and deep-lying passing ability out of defensive midfield. McCarty served as the engine for several teams, including the New York Red Bulls, with whom he won two Supporters’ Shields, the Chicago Fire and Nashville SC.
He was a two-time all-star and MLS Best XI selection in 2015. Saturday marked McCarty’s 521st all-time appearance in MLS across the regular season and postseason, a career spanning 19 MLS seasons and six MLS teams. McCarty’s 488 regular-season appearances are the third-most in MLS history, and second among field players.
Now, he’ll get at least one more game to build on his legacy before stepping away from the game.
A complicated opponent
Inter Miami head coach Tata Martino had made it clear last Friday that Atlanta United was a complicated opponent. He understood what his side would be walking into on Saturday. Despite an underwhelming year, an incendiary Mercedes-Benz Stadium tends to even the playing field.
“The revenge match in ATL will be difficult,” he told reporters on Oct. 25. “(Atlanta) take advantage of the space on the pitch.”
It’s a massive field and one that Miami never looked comfortable on. The Atlanta win has dented Miami’s armor and threatened to end Messi’s storybook season.
Atlanta, meanwhile, was always in the match. The roars from the crowd were reminiscent of the 2018 season in which Martino led the Five Stripes to the MLS Cup title. It was a much different scenario on Saturday, but the stakes are arguably higher for Martino this time around. Miami wasn’t facing elimination, but anything less than an MLS Cup appearance in 2024 would be a major disappointment for the club, the league and Apple TV.
Atlanta got the job done once again. They’ve had their backs against the wall for weeks now. And the winner came from Silva, a forgotten signing who has slowly fallen out of favor. What a way to return to relevance.
Beginning of change for ATL
Changes are still necessary in Atlanta. After all, the team is currently operating under interim head coach Rob Valentino and is also in need of a replacement for Carlos Bocanegra’s vacated technical director role.
After their run is over, Atlanta United CEO Garth Lagerwey will hire a new head coach and a new sporting director before 2025. It will be the reset that the club has needed for years, but for now, the focus must remain on the task at hand: Game 3.
Atlanta has leaned on the “us against the world” cliché, even turning the highlight from Valentino’s postgame speech on Decision Day into a hashtag. “F— ‘em all,” Valentino said that day.
#FEA is still trending in Atlanta.
THAT’S A PLAYOFF WIN IN THE 404 💰 pic.twitter.com/gRjVxIDCFy
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) November 3, 2024
What did Rob Valentino say?
On the atmosphere: “It was everything I dreamed that it would be. When that crowd gets going, there’s nothing like it. I can remember being in here for the first time and watching Miguel (Almiron) and (Josef Martinez) break out in transition, the crowd gets crazy. It’s so loud. And after we scored the goal, and they’re walking back to the half line, I was trying to recompose myself and also make sure that we were solid again for another minute, but it felt like I remember it.”
What did Tata Martino say?
On facing elimination: “The players we have in the dressing room have faced more difficult situations. We wanted to end the series tonight, but we have an identity. We have a way of playing that we won’t change, that we haven’t changed.”
What next?
Saturday, Nov. 9: Game 3, in Miami (Chase Stadium), 8 p.m. ET
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(Top photo: Kevin C. Cox / Imagn Images)
