Atlanta United Draws New England 1-1

ATLANTA (May 30, 2018) — Atlanta United drew 1-1 with New England Revolution Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium. Josef Martínez scored his ninth goal of the season in the first half, however New England capitalized on a late penalty kick decision to secure the draw. With the result, Atlanta ran its road unbeaten streak to five matches and remains in first place in the Supporters’ Shield standings with 26 points from 13 matches.

Atlanta opened the scoring in the 23^rd minute when Martinez, now alone atop the Golden Boot race with nine goals, found the back of the net with a one-time finish. Darlington Nagbe played the ball wide to Julian Gressel, who sent in a cross from the right wing. Martinez checked his run in the box and struck a right-footed shot from around the penalty spot into the net, sending goalkeeper Matt Turner the wrong way.

Brad Guzan made three saves in the first half, including a stop in the 28^th minute on Crisitan Penilla and a diving save on a Diego Fagundez shot in the 35^th minute to preserve the 1-0 lead at the half.

Atlanta continued to push for another goal in the second half and created a number of scoring chances. In the 57^th minute, Miguel Almirón sprinted past the Revs defense and had his left-footed shot saved by Turner, who made six saves on the night. Two minutes later, Martínez picked up a loose ball in midfield and dribbled towards the top of the penalty box, where he led Ezequiel Barco, who forced another save from Turner.

Barco would have two more opportunities to add a second goal. In the 66^th minute, he faked a defender, cut back onto his right foot, and fired a shot that was initially saved and then subsequently cleared off the line by a Revs defender. Likely his best chance of the night came in the 82^nd minute, when he evaded a New England defender and continued his run into the box, playing a clever give-and-go with Romario Williams, yet Barco’s shot glanced off of Turner and struck the crossbar.

New England was awarded a penalty kick in the 86^th minute when Krisztian Nemeth drew a foul in the box on Kevin Kratz. Teal Bunbury stepped up and buried the penalty to level the match 1-1 in the final minutes.

Atlanta United (8-3-2, 26 points) returns to action at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, June, 2 against Philadelphia Union (7:30 p.m., FOX Sports Southeast).

 

MATCH RESOURCES

• Post-match video  
• Full Box Score
• Quote sheet 
• Match photos 

 

LINE SCORE

Atlanta United 1, New England 1

Gillette Stadium

Foxborough, Massachusetts

 

STATS

Shots: 12-9 Atlanta

Shots on Target: 7-6 Atlanta

Corner kicks: 5 Tied

Fouls committed: 16-15 New England

Saves: 6-5 New England

Clearances: 17-14 Atlanta

Offside: 5-2 New England

Possession: 53-47 Atlanta

Passing Accuracy: 75-74 Atlanta

 

SCORING SUMMARY

ATL- Josef Martinez 23’ (Julian Gressel, Darlington Nagbe) HIGHLIGHT

NE-Teal Bunbury 88’ (PK) HIGHLIGHT

 

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY

ATL- Julian Gressel (yellow) 37’

NE- Wilfried Zahibo (yellow) 53’

NE- Jalil Anibaba (yellow) 73’

NE- Krisztian Németh (yellow) 81’

ATL- Brad Guzan (yellow) 88’

ATL- Romario Williams (yellow) 89’

 

ATLANTA UNITED STARTING LINEUP

Brad Guzan; Chris McCann, Michael Parkhurst ©, Franco Escobar; Mikey Ambrose, Julian Gressel, Jeff Larentowicz, Darlington Nagbe, Miguel Almirón; Josef Martinez (Romario Williams 79’), Ezequiel Barco (Kevin Kratz 85’).

 

Substitutes not used: Alec Kann, Andrew Carleton, Miles Robinson, Brandon Vazquez, Sal Zizzo

 

NEW ENGLAND STARTING LINEUP

Matt Turner; Antonio Milnar Delamea, Chris Tierney (Gabriel Somi 45’), Jalil Anibaba, Andrew Farrell, Diego Fagundez, Luis Caicedo, Scott Caldwell (Kelyn Rowe 81’), Wilfried Zahibo (Krisztian Németh 61’), Cristian Penilla, Teal Bunbury.

 

Substitutes not used: Brandon Bye, Claude Dielna, Brian Wright, Brad Knighton

 

ATTENDANCE

10,547

 

OFFICIALS

Silviu Petrescu (referee), Richard Gamache (assistant), Gianni Facchini (assistant), Robert Sibiga (fourth), Alan Kelly (VAR).

 

TEAM NOTES

• Jeff Larentowicz started his 351^st  career MLS game, moving him into fifth place all-time in league history by a field player.
• Larentowicz also appeared in his 370th career game, which is sixth-most in league history by a field player.
• Josef Martinez scored his league-leading ninth goal this season.
• Mikey Ambrose made his second start of the season at left back.