Atlanta United gets all the results, advances to MLS playoffs

ORLANDO, Fla. — An Atlanta United season that hasn’t gone as planned improbably will continue with an appearance in the MLS playoffs.

Atlanta United defeated Orlando 2-1 with goals from Saba Lobjanidze and Jamal Thiare on Saturday, and two of the three possible other results it needed, a loss by D.C. United to Charlotte or by Montreal to NYCFC and a Philadelphia loss to Cincinnati, happened.

Despite the firing of its manager midseason, the selling of its two best players, and the firing of its technical director, Atlanta United (10-14-10) will compete in the playoffs for the second consecutive season. The ninth-seeded Five Stripes will play at eighth-seeded Montreal in a one-game showdown Tuesday. The winner will advance to a best-of-three series that will start at Miami on Friday.

Nothing has come easy for Atlanta United this season, and it didn’t against Orlando. Duncan McGuire appeared to score the tying goal for Orlando in the 89th minute. A review disallowed the goal because of a handball. Atlanta United hasn’t had a lot of breaks this season. That disallowed goal was the biggest in its favor.

“I feel really proud,” interim manager Rob Valentino said. “I feel a lot of joy for the people, the players, the staff, the people at the club that have had a tough year. I don’t know if this vindicates it, but it just shows that you can do anything if you just keep showing up and just keep showing up, keep doing your work.”

It was an improbable win for Atlanta United, which has won two consecutive matches for only the second time. The first streak happened in the season’s second and third matches, putting an oddly shaped bookend on the regular season.

The Lions were 10-2-1 in their previous 13 matches, taking the most points of any team in MLS since July 1. They’ve scored at least two goals in 11 of their past 13 matches.

Valentino’s lineup was composed of Thiare at striker, Alexey Miranchuk, Lobjanidze, Tyler Wolff, Bartosz Slisz and Jay Fortune in the midfield, Brooks Lennon and Pedro Amador as the fullbacks, Stian Gregersen and Derrick Williams as the centerbacks, and Brad Guzan in goal.

Valentino’s pregame speech was pretty simple, according to Lobjanidze: “Win the (expletive) game.”

As Atlanta United and Orlando were settling into the rhythm of the match, a few hundred miles to the north, Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead against Cincinnati in the third minute of their match.

Atlanta United took a 1-0 lead on a right-footed shot from Lobjanidze, who played a one-two with Amador, who hit a back-heel into space to be run on to, near the top of the 18-yard box. It was Lobjanidze’s ninth goal, a career-high, and Amador’s fourth assist. It was only the third time this season that Atlanta United scored in the opening 15 minutes.

“I know Amador has quality,” Lobjanidze said of the pass.

With the goal, combined with no score in Montreal’s match against NYCFC, and 0-0 in D.C. United’s match against Charlotte, Atlanta United moved to within one point of the playoff line.

Thiare gave Atlanta United a 2-0 lead in the 16th minute when he toe-poked a loose ball into the net from a few feet away. The sequence started with a corner kick that bounced off an Orlando player, then off goalkeeper Pedro Gallese, and to Thiare. It was Thiare’s sixth goal and Atlanta United’s first two-goal lead since the 24th match against NYCFC. That match ended in a 2-2 draw. It was also the first time this season that Atlanta United scored twice in the opening 16 minutes.

However, Montreal took a 1-0 lead against NYCFC with a goal in the 18th minute. D.C. United and Charlotte remained tied at 0-0.

Orlando cut Atlanta United’s lead to 2-1 when neither Rafael Santos nor Martin Ojeda were marked by defenders. Santos played a cross to the near post, and Ojeda headed it in in the 42nd minute.

Former Atlanta United standout Josef Martinez scored in the first minute of first-half stoppage time to increase Montreal’s lead to 2-0 against NYCFC, and another former Atlanta United player, Yamil Asad, scored for Cincinnati in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time to tie Philadelphia 1-1, putting Atlanta United’s hopes mostly on those holding up, combined with D.C. United losing to Charlotte. That match was 0-0 at halftime.

In the opening seconds of the second half, Lobjanidze was tackled by Dagur Thorhallsson in the 18-yard box, resulting in a penalty kick. Miranchuk ‘s shot was saved by Pedro Gallese, who dove to his right.

While that wasn’t good for Atlanta United, what was good was Cincinnati took a 2-1 lead against Philadelphia because of an own goal scored by Jakob Glesnes in the 47th minute.

Atlanta United then got the final result it needed: Charlotte took a 1-0 against D.C. United with a goal by Pep Biel in the 58th minute.

The next test for Atlanta United would be to hold onto its lead. The team was 8-3-2 this season when scoring first.

Charlotte scored again to take a 2-0 lead in the 75th minute.

Atlanta United needed only to maintain its one-goal lead.

Valentino subbed on Dax McCarty, making his 489th and final regular season appearance, Tristan Muyumba and Luis Abram on for Gregersen, Fortune and Lennon in the 78th minute to try to strengthen the defense.

Neither Valentino nor the players knew the results of the other matches. They said they didn’t want to know.

And then Valentino asked for the other results.

“I just felt like I needed to know, is it something else I can give them as extra nudge?” he said.

The visitors played long stretches with 11 players deep in its defensive third as it blunted attack after attack, with help from the Video Assistant Referee, who recommended that Rubiel Vazquez review McGuire’s goal.

As the potential tying goal went in, Williams said he thought “that’s been the story of our season.” He said asked McGuire during the wait if the ball hit his arm. He said it did.

The story got a plot twist.

As the match drew down, Lobjanidze said he looked over to the bench and saw Xande Silva motioning to this teammates to keep it down.

That’s when Lobjanidze realized that the team was on the verge of the playoffs.

At the final whistle, the players on the bench embraced Valentino before running to give Guzan bear hugs.

“We defended well, they battered us for the last 30-40, minutes, but we stuck in there,” Williams said. “We showed how much we wanted it.”

Before the match, a website calculated that there was a 10% chance that all of the results would go Atlanta United’s way.

“Ain’t that some stuff,” Valentino said. “I get there’s probabilities, and those things happen. There’s stats and all that. There’s humans that make decisions, and humans will change the course if they have to make decisions on the fly, and they’ll change the course of their actions. I get it, but at the same time, like the human spirit can fight through things. We proved that.”

Atlanta United advanced to the playoffs.

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Atlanta United’s 2024 schedule

Feb. 24 Columbus 1, Atlanta United 0

March 9 Atlanta United 4, New England 1

March 17 Atlanta United 2, Orlando 0

March 23 Toronto 2, Atlanta United 0

March 31 Atlanta United 3, Chicago 0

April 6 Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 1

April 14 Atlanta United 2, Philadelphia 2

April 20 Cincinnati 2, Atlanta United 1

April 27 Atlanta United 1, Chicago 1

May 4 Minnesota 2, Atlanta United 1

May 7 Atlanta United 3, Charlotte Independence 0 in U.S. Open Cup