On the same night that the Atlanta Hawks, winners of 11 of their last 12 games, were hosting Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in a packed State Farm Arena, their neighbors, Atlanta United, played in front of 35,418 fans to a 0-0 draw.
The result meant consecutive weeks where Atlanta United picked up a point. That’s something to look forward to as they head into a break in the schedule.
After the game, Atlanta United manager Eduardo “Tata” Martino said he was pleased with parts of the result and not so much with the other part.
“A clean sheet is good, but of course, we prefer to win the game,” Martino said.
The Five Stripes came into this meeting with D.C. United is on a high after defeating the Philadelphia Union 3-1 last week. All three designated players for Atlanta United contributed to the victory. On Saturday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, that energy felt similar, as the home team dominated possession through the first 25 minutes of the match. Atlanta United wasn’t chasing this match like they did the first three matches (all losses) of the season. There was something different, maybe better, about the way they approach the game now.
The Five Stripes held D.C. United scoreless during the first half, but did not capitalize on that defensive effort. Atlanta United had 66.9% of the possession and took four times as many shots on goal (4-1) as their opponent during the first half. Numbers aside, the score was still 0-0 at intermission.
D.C. United (2-0-2 coming into the match) looked rushed on offense and uncommitted at times on the defensive end. Atlanta was scoreless through 59 minutes because they missed passes, not because D.C. United forced them to.
D.C.’s best chance to score came in the 61st minute when Atlanta United experienced a moment of sloppiness in the back. Atlanta United’s most recent and best opportunity to put points on the scoreboard came in the 65th minute when Emmanuel Latte Lath had a solid chance, but might have waited too long for a defender to nullify that chance.
Atlanta United will have a week off for the international break before hosting its fourth consecutive home game on Saturday, April 4, against the Columbus Crew (7:30 p.m).
