Atlanta United beat Inter Miami at home 2-1 to force a Game 3 in Fort Lauderdale after Xande Silva won it for Atlanta in sudden death.
It started out as a very back and forth match as Miami and Atlanta created many opportunities, but neither team could find the back of the net. In the 40th minute, David Martinez capitalized after Federico Redondo made it difficult for Brad Guzan to quickly punt a ball. Guzan dropped it, Redondo regained possession and passed the ball to Martinez who scored on a wide open net to take the lead for Inter Miami. Complaints for the goal to overturned due to Redondo impeding Guzan were to no avail for Atlanta.
The goal was Miami's only shot on target in the first half and one of their two on the night.
“We were really intentional about how we worked this week, and in terms of breaking down video, obviously, looking at some of the mistakes we made in the last match. Fatigue was a big factor too, so rest obviously helps that, but it's not the only thing. We looked at [Inter Miami’s] patterns of play, what they do with it, especially with the big guys. I did think we were a little bit, especially in the first half, sloppy on some of the basic stuff, just failing to connect on simple passes,” said Interim Head Coach Rob Valentino. “Maybe that's a little bit of nerves, or getting used to the pitch again, I don’t know. If I had to look at it earlier, right now, you just had to win the match, so do anything you have to do to win the match. We did talk about tactics too, obviously, since that's important and all the things, but ultimately, at the end it is about having that belief and playing with intensity. I feel like the team showed it, and they never gave up.”
"It felt definitely more positive. When we went down there, they were on top of a lot of the game, but I felt like here we were on top of the game,” said Derrick Williams. “I don't remember them having many clear-cut chances. It was a bit of a mistake for the goal, but other than that, we defended really well. Everyone tonight, all 11. We really worked hard and did well.”
Atlanta would find the equalizer in the 58th minute when Pedro Amador delivered a stunning cross from 30 yards out into the box to connect with Williams who headed it past Drake Callender.
It would stay 1-1 for the rest of the match heading into stoppage time. Then in the 94th minute, Xande Silva would push the Five Stripes to victory. Atlanta won a challenge in the midfield and Alexey Miranchuk slid a pass to Silva who buried the shot into the back of the net.
Silva has battled back from injuries to contribute off the bench in both games in the series. “Yeah, It happens. This is football, so we try to be fit all the time. As I said before, there's rocks on our path, so we try to avoid, that's what I've been doing, trying to get fit and here I am now.”
68,455 fans were in attendance, which was the fifth highest attended postseason match in MLS history. Atlanta United also holds the top three spots for postseason attendance records for the league.
“It was unbelievable. I will remember tonight for my life. We work for having memories like this, like tonight, so I'm really happy,” said Ronald Hernandez after the match. “To be honest, we need to enjoy this moment, you guys too, and the next week we got to prepare and go again.”
The Five Stripes will go on the road to face Inter Miami in Game 3 of the Bets-of-3 series on Nov. 9 at 8:00 p.m.
“I guess that's our story this year, or maybe every year, I don't know. We make things interesting, don’t we,” said Valentino.
✍️: Madison Crews
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