Atlanta United: Analyzing their seven losses from the 2018 season
By Josh Bouland
September 2 @ DC United
Ah yes, the old “Atlanta is far superior to DC but somehow finds a way to lose 3-1 anyway” result! Yes, Atlanta was the much better team. Again. Fans will recall the Five Stripes’ three losses to DC in their inaugural season, despite how awful DC was. And although DC improved thanks to their midseason acquisition of English legend Wayne Rooney, they were still the worse team. Atlanta managed to win their first two meetings earlier in the season, but old ghosts came back to haunt them.
How DC United Won: Luciano Acosta scored a brace while Wayne Rooney converted from the spot. Acosta opened the scoring in the 29th minute and sealed his brace in the 77th minute. Rooney converted the penalty in the 52nd minute. After that goal, DC never looked back and seemingly cruised to the win.
What went wrong: Josef Martinez saw his streak of nine consecutive games with a goal snapped. The Five Stripes registered 22 shots with seven falling on goal, but only scored once. The players were unable to finish and that came back to bite them.
The bright spot: George Bello, at age 17, made his first appearance with the first team after subbing on in the 76th minute. Bello would go on to make two starts for Atlanta down the stretch and his first appearance signified the beginning of his contributions to the first team. Bello should feature more in 2019, and his first appearance was a significant step toward that accomplishment.
The takeaway: The loss snapped a seven game undefeated streak in which Atlanta took 17 of 21 points. The loss also showed that Atlanta still struggled with DC United, despite winning twice earlier in the season. Whether it was Ben Olsen out-coaching Tata Martino or the players playing down to their opposition, Atlanta lost to DC yet again.