mobanmarketThe second-year club stifled the Supporters’ Shield winners while the Western Conference was decided in a five-goal thriller
After building a 3-0 lead in the opening leg of their Eastern Conference final clash, it would have taken a monumental collapse for Atlanta United to miss out on a chance to host MLS Cup. That collapse never came as the second-year club cruised past the New York Red Bulls to win the series.
Atlanta will take on the Portland Timbers in MLS Cup on December 8, after Portland defeated Sporting Kansas City 3-2 in the Western Conference final second leg on Thursday.
Atlanta was able to effectively kill the series all through Thursday’s second leg, holding the Red Bulls attack virtually silent in a 1-0 loss at Red Bull Arena. Even with the loss, Atlanta goes on to host MLS Cup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium while the Red Bulls miss out on a chance to host in a season where the club won its third Supporters’ Shield in six seasons.
From the onset, it was apparent that it was a matter of going through the motions for Atlanta United, who went ahead 3-0 in last week’s opening leg on goals from Josef Martinez, Franco Escobar and Hector Villalba.
Martinez had a chance to all but seal the series in the game’s opening seconds, but the Venezuelan international scuffed his shot 18 seconds in after a deflection put him through on goal.