Galoppo Debuts, Miranchuk's Strike Hold Up as Atlanta United Downs Portland
With nine matches left in the regular season in a crowded chase for the playoffs in the Eastern Conference, Atlanta United's margin for error was close to nil going forward. Their first test in the chase with the rest of the pack was at Providence Park in Portland against a Timbers side fighting to stay in the top nine in the West.
For Atlanta United on the road, one of the main storylines was the first Five Stripes start for Giuliano Galoppo in midfield. With his paperwork properly filed, he could enter the lineup for Tata Martino, inserted in the XI alongside as close to a first-choice group as possible.
Lucas Hoyos was in net. The backline, left to right, was Báez, Alonso, Díaz, and Jacob. The defensive midfielders were Muyumba and Amaro, with the attackers being Almirón, Galoppo, and Miranchuk. Embolo was up top.
For Portland and head coach Martí Cifuentes, James Pantemis was between the sticks. Fory, Waterman, Surman, and Ronald Hernández were at the back. Bassett, Chará, and Da Costa had the midfield. Velde, Antony, and Lassiter were on the front line.
There was an early concern for United as Paulo Díaz went down in the first minute, though he continued and played until the 82nd, when Enea Mihaj came on for him late. Breel Embolo had the first shot of the match two minutes later, a low effort from the right side of the box that Pantemis saved in the bottom left corner, set up by Alexey Miranchuk.
Kristoffer Velde had two early looks of his own for Portland, a shot that missed left in the 9th minute and a close-range header saved by Lucas Hoyos in the 11th, an early sign of how often the ball would find him over the course of the night.
Atlanta broke through in the 28th as Alexey Miranchuk fired a shot from 15 yards past Pantemis. The official scoring listed the goal as unassisted, even as Miguel Almirón was the last United player to touch the ball before it reached Miranchuk.
"To be honest, I was waiting for this ball and it got right to my feet," Miranchuk said. "Then, yeah, a fake with the right foot, shoot, then go to the left. And yeah, it was a good shot."
Atlanta United had to make a substitution four minutes later as Tomás Jacob came off with a muscle injury, described after the match by Martino as a hamstring that "hardens up," as opposed to a standard pull. Matt Edwards came in cold in the 32nd minute and put in just over sixty minutes of yeoman work by the time the match concluded.
Velde forced another save from Hoyos in the 35th minute, and Almirón's left-footed try from outside the box sailed over the bar in first-half stoppage time. The other moment of note came in that same stretch, as Waterman and Galoppo both picked up yellow cards, with Waterman shoving Galoppo to the ground. Galoppo was not intimidated by the moment, and referee Ismael Elfath went to cards in both directions. Waterman was fortunate to avoid a second yellow, laughing his way through the sequence.
Portland held the edge in shots, 8-6, with two on target apiece, but the Miranchuk goal was the only mark on the scoreboard.
In the second half, Portland continued to press, forcing a save from Antony in the 46th minute and getting two more blocked efforts from Velde in the 53rd and 57th before Diego Chará headed a corner narrowly wide in the 58th. Giuliano Galoppo had Atlanta's first look of the second half, blocked in the 50th minute, before Breel Embolo's header in the 61st drifted just wide.
Almirón had a shot drift wide in the 68th minute off a Miranchuk through ball on the break, and forced a save from Pantemis in the 79th, this one set up by Embolo. Cooper Sanchez, on for Galoppo since the 65th minute, had a blocked attempt of his own in the 73rd, also assisted by Miranchuk.
Jay Fortune and Enea Mihaj came on in the 82nd minute, replacing Tristan Muyumba and Paulo Díaz to see the match home. The Timbers pushed hard in the closing stretch, six more attempts in the final 15 minutes, capped by a stoppage-time header from substitute Vincent Janssen that sailed wide, but Atlanta held on.
Portland finished with 21 shots to Atlanta United's 10, though Lucas Hoyos was rarely tested. Each side managed just three shots on target. As Portland pushed for an equalizer, they had 34 touches inside the Atlanta box to United's 15, but missed on all four of their clear-cut chances. The Timbers also fired 16 shots from inside Atlanta's box, though 12 of their shots on the night missed the target entirely. Defensively, Atlanta United led Portland in tackles, clearances, and blocks across the full 90.
"Everybody does their job, defensively, offensively," Miranchuk said of the team's shape. "From what I can feel and think, it's really hard to score against us. I feel like we're more aggressive on the back, and it's really helpful for us as offensive players."
Numbers of Note: Giuliano Galoppo played 65 minutes in his Atlanta United debut, going 19-for-22 passing on 33 touches, with seven of those passes into the Timbers' final third. Defensively, he had three tackles and a recovery while winning four of five ground duels.
"He also had a good game," Martino said of Galoppo. "He lasted about an hour, and he did it very well. I think as he gets into rhythm, each game he will become more important for us."
Miranchuk credited the early chemistry with his new midfield partner. "He's a great player, he understands the game really good," Miranchuk said. "We just did what the coach told us, and we kind of combined together between us a little bit, and it felt great."
Matt Edwards, filling in for Jacob, led all players with 12 defensive contributions: two tackles, a block, six clearances, and three interceptions, while winning four duels on the night. Much of that work came in a personal battle with Velde on the flank.
"I'd seen his play, we watched some of his film, he's a good player," Edwards said. "But once he got in my face, I accepted the challenge, and it got me ready to go."
Martino singled out the substitute's night as well. "He did a great job, because it wasn't easy accommodating to that moment of the match, and he did it well."
With the win, Atlanta United is now seven points out of the play-in round at 7-14-5, 26 points, with eight matches left in the regular season, five of them at home. NYC FC visits Mercedes-Benz Stadium next Saturday night.
"It's massive, a good momentum builder," Edwards said of the road win. "We need to tackle next weekend at home. We can get three points before the break, and then we need to go again the week after that." Edwards expects Atlanta to feel the international window too. "I assume both teams (to have players) away too, so it won't just be a disadvantage for us. But we have great players that can come in and make a difference."
Martino pointed to contributions from across the roster, starters and substitutes alike, as the defining trait of this stretch. "What we have now is a very competitive squad, so the changes don't disrupt the functioning," he said. "We should have won the match in D.C. with the team that started, but also with the team that finished, with the changes made. Today, the same thing happened exactly. We started with a team that gave responses, and we finished with changes that also gave responses. That's what we were looking for from the signings the club made."
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