An incredible goal in the final minutes of a now-historic soccer game secured Atlanta United’s victory over Inter Miami in an unforgettable match. On Nov. 9, Atlanta United went head to head with Inter Miami CF in the MLS Cup. After one win each at their respective stadiums, Inter Miami and Atlanta United fought for the last chance to advance to the next round, making it an intense game for both sides.
The match started off strong for Miami, with Matías Rojas scoring a goal within the 17th minute. Atlanta had a strong comeback with Jamal Thiaré scoring two goals in a row during the 19th and 21st minutes. Atlanta continued their leading momentum in the score until half time.
The match continued 2-1 Atlanta until Lionel Messi tied the game at the 65th minute. Finally, Bartosz Slisz made a goal-winning shot and brought the score to 3-2 Atlanta.
“The winning goal when we scored the header was pretty cool,” said ninth grader Joshua Potier. Many local Atlanta United fans felt the same way, particularly pleased that Atlanta was able to hold their lead until the referee blew the final whistle.
“I was very surprised that Atlanta United beat Lionel Messi and Inter Miami,” said ninth grader Vikram Rao.
Atlanta United’s unexpected, underdog victory took many by surprise, especially considering Messi’s contributions to Inter Miami. Ever since Messi joined the team, many soccer fans thought that Miami would, without a doubt, win the MLS Cup, especially this year. Some people have even gone so far as to say that the referees were on Miami’s side in earlier games. Atlanta United fans are particularly proud to have proven these conspiracies and predictions incorrect.
Heading forward in the semifinals, the games were Los Angeles FC versus Seattle, LA versus Minnesota, and New York City versus New York Red Bulls. To advance to the semifinals, each team needed to win two out of three matches. The semifinals filtered out teams to advance to the conference finals and, eventually, to the MLS Cup. Prior to the semifinals, LAFC played against Vancouver and won two out of three games. Seattle played against Houston and won two consecutive games. Both of Seattle’s wins came down to penalty kicks while LAFC won both their games without needing to go to penalty kicks, making LAFC a favorite to advance to the conference final against Seattle on Nov. 23.
Looking at LA vs Minnesota, LA won both of its games against Colorado. While Minnesota also won two out of two of their games, their wins were secured via penalty kicks like those of Seattle. Going off of the same logic that fewer penalty kicks equate to better skill in the field, LA had a higher likelihood of winning against Minnesota during their game on Nov. 24.
Moving to more local interests, Atlanta United played Orlando, and a lot of people have mixed opinions on how they would play going into the match.
“I don’t think that we are going to make it far,” said senior Sophia Jo.
On the opposing side of that statement, Potier said, “I think that we are going to go pretty far because we have been playing really well recently.”
Atlanta has shown that when push comes to shove, they can pull through and clinch a win. Looking at the statistics, Orlando, which is seeded fourth, won two out of three of its games against Charlotte, which is seeded fifth. One of those games was won by penalty kicks. Atlanta, which is seeded ninth, won two out of three of its games against Miami, which is the number one seed, and Atlanta won both games without needing penalty kicks. With the streak that they are on, Atlanta United could make a huge comeback and fight their way to a place in the semifinals.
Atlanta United has a lot of work and effort they need to put in if they want to win their next game and advance to the next round. With the help of Brad Guzan, Atlanta United’s goalkeeper who has made amazing saves as of late, Atlanta has a great chance to win against Orlando.
Edited by Eva Bevington
