Atlanta United 2 comes back to Fifth Third Stadium to claim two points against Columbus Crew 2.
Columbus would have the first goal of the night in the 14th minute as Adrian Gonzales flicked a ball past Atlanta’s defense to Jayden Da who slotted a shot to the back post. Columbus would keep the 1-0 lead going into halftime.
Atlanta had multiple chances throughout the second half, but wouldn’t find the equalizer until the 79th minute as Ethan Dudley drove through the midfield and found Matías Gallardo on the right wing. Gallardo cut inside the 18-yard box and launched a left-footed shot into the net to earn his first goal of the season.
“It’s something that I’ve been anticipating for a while, because it hadn’t happened, so I am very happy about coming on and helping the team with the goal,” said Gallardo after the match.
In the 84th minute, Atlanta took the lead as Gallardo picked out Dominik Chong Qui as he made a run towards the back post, and the 16 year-old’s shot slipped past the keeper to make it 2-1. This is his second professional goal in just two games with the 2s.
“We have got a really young group who are trying their best to improve. They’re trying so hard to make their way into the game and see how far they can go,” said head coach Steve Cooke. “I think we're on a good track, and I thought Dominic Chong Qui tonight, in particular, was excellent and scored another goal. That's two in two games from left back, which is almost unheard of. I think he had his first 90 minute plus game, looked fresh as a Daisy at the end and did really, really well. I think a player who I have really high hopes for is Cooper Sanchez coming on and looking like he's a season pro. Cooper is somebody who has great technical ability, great intelligence about the game. I think both of those players tonight really stood out as looking like they could have a real good chance to make it.”
Columbus was able to level the match in the 88th minute when Christopher Pearson was able to capitalize on a rebound off a corner, and launched a shot that bounced off the crossbar into the net.
Both teams would walk away from the match with one point each, but an extra point was on the line in a penalty shootout. Jayden Hibbert had four crucial saves on the night and had two saves in the penalty shootout. Atlanta would come out on top winning their second shootout of the season 4-3.
“When you see Columbus on the schedule, you know it;’s going to be a good game. They have a winning history. The coaching and the development there is great. You know it’s going to be a tough game coming into it, but we were all fired up,” said Hibbert. “We had a rough week previously, but you’re coming back to this at home with the fans, it was great. It was a good game.”
This was Hibbert’s first game back with the 2s after being on loan with Birmingham Legion. This is also a huge result for Atlanta especially after a bad loss against New York Red Bulls II.
“It’s huge. There is still time in the season,” said Hibbert when asked about how this match can help with confidence throughout the rest of the season. “ think 14 games. There is still time for players to grow. We have a very young locker room, so these points, especially at home, are extremely meaningful to the guys in the group.”
Atlanta United 2 goes back on the road to go up against Crown Legacy FC Sunday, July 21 at 5:00 p.m. You can listen to the match on soccerdownhere.mixlr.com with pregame coverage starting at 4:30 p.m.
✍️: Madison Crews
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