Final Whistle: Atlanta United Knock Toronto FC Out of the Playoff Race in 3-1 Home Finale
Eliminated from playoff contention by Wednesday's 2-1 loss at New York City FC, Atlanta United had two matches left to close out the 2026 season and look toward a new beginning in February with the 2027 MLS Sprint Season.
How would the roster respond with Toronto FC coming to town trying to stave off elimination themselves? That was the question this week, and it will be again next week in New Jersey in the season finale against the Red Bulls. But first things first.
Tata Martino started his first-choice XI with one noticeable change: Cooper Sanchez back in the lineup. Lucas Hoyos was in net behind a backline of Elías Báez, Júnior Alonso, Paulo Díaz, and Tomás Jacob. Sanchez joined Mauricio Amaro and Giuliano Galoppo in midfield. Miguel Almirón and Alexey Miranchuk were on the wings with Breel Embolo up top.
For head coach Robin Fraser and Toronto FC, the task was fairly straightforward. A full three points was needed so their fate could be decided on the final match day (taking Red Bulls and Nashville out of the discussion). They were trying to build off the momentum of being beaten only once in their last five matches going into the match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Luka Gavran started in net. Matheus Pereira, Nickseon Gomis, Benjamín Kuscevic, and Richie Laryea were the backline. Dániel Sallói, Djordje Mihailovic, Niklas Dorsch, and Jonathan Osorio were the midfield four, with Josh Sargent and Theo Corbeanu up top.
TFC kept Atlanta United from advancing early into the attacking half. As a result, Corbeanu had an early chance at Hoyos in the fifth minute, but his shot from the right side of the box was saved.
Five minutes later, Atlanta United had their first chance at goal as an errant TFC pass was quickly intercepted by Sanchez. Embolo was half a stride ahead of the entry pass, and the flag went up for offside.
In the 22nd minute, Atlanta United got on the board first, starting on the right wing just outside the 18-yard box. Sanchez sent the ball to Almirón, and Miggy cut the ball inside to his left. Almirón moved the ball to Miranchuk just outside the D. A perfectly weighted ball through the legs of a TFC defender found a sprinting Almirón again, who baseball-slid the ball past Gavran, good enough for a 1-0 lead.
Atlanta United struck again in the 40th minute. A ball over the top found Almirón down the left wing. Cutting inside to the near post, Almirón found Sanchez, who had followed into the open space created by Embolo near the penalty spot. Sanchez confidently struck the ball into the net for the 2-0 advantage and his first MLS goal.
"It was honestly like a movie to me," Sanchez said after the match. "I've been waiting for it all season. Obviously, I scored in Open Cup, but to get my first one in MLS, it was a dream to me."
He kissed the badge after scoring. The fans, he said, "deserve way more, and we know that."
Galoppo had a near scoring chance a few minutes later as Embolo tried to head the ball his way just outside the TFC six. The deflection off a defender's shoulders popped the ball into the air long enough to give Galoppo the chance at a bicycle kick. The effort went high and wide, but Embolo applauded Galoppo for the imagination.
At the break, Atlanta United had more shots (6-1, 2-1 on target) and most of the effective play in the attacking third. Miranchuk had a first-half assist on 14-for-19 passing to go along with Almirón's 22-for-24 (plus a goal and an assist). Sanchez won four first-half duels and had six defensive recoveries to go with his goal in the first 45.
In the second 45, Atlanta wasted little time getting a third. In the 51st minute, Embolo stayed with the play after losing possession and recovered the ball along the far touchline. He eventually found Almirón outside the arc, who fired from 24 yards out. The strike hit the post flush, past a diving Gavran.
Miranchuk deftly put the rebound home with his left, and the margin was three to the good.
Martino made a double change in the 70th minute after Amaro went down injured, bringing on Adrian Gill for Amaro and Jay Fortune for Almirón. With the match in hand, Atlanta almost added a fourth soon after. Fortune got in behind the backline in the 73rd minute, but Gavran saved his shot from the center of the box. A minute later, Fortune was through again, and his shot slammed off Gavran's legs and out for an Atlanta corner.
Atlanta United got in behind repeatedly as Toronto FC chased full points. In the 77th minute, Embolo got in front of a Reds defender. His initial shot drew a kick save from Gavran that popped straight up in the air. Embolo's follow-up header came off the near post, slow enough for Gavran to put his gloves around it.
Assistant coach Rodrigo Ríos told SDH's Madison Crews after the match that Atlanta deserved "three or four more goals" from the clear chances it created, and that the effort without the ball stood out as much as the finishing.
"You can see Miguel, Alexey, coming to help defending, and Paulo getting all the way to attack," Ríos said. "That's the thing that we want to see."
Toronto finally broke through in the 79th minute. Lewis Morgan, on as a 54th-minute substitute, finished from the center of the box into the bottom left corner off a Josh Sargent assist to make it 3-1.
Gavran stayed busy, stopping a Tristan Muyumba shot in the 83rd, and United fended off Toronto's charge in the final minutes. The home season ends with full points in a dominant display, knocking Toronto FC out of postseason consideration as well.
From the Postgame
Asked at the start of the season how Almirón and Miranchuk might connect, Martino said what his staff imagined looked a lot like Sunday's opening goal. He did not hide from how long it took to show up.
"What we regret is that this showed up in Matchday 33," Martino said. Asked why, he answered, "I don't know if I have an answer for that. For me, it's unacceptable that two players of their caliber took so long to connect, and I take that on as the responsibility of the coaching staff, not the players."
He was just as direct about Sanchez's return to the lineup.
"That at some point he stopped starting for the team means nothing more than a decision by the coaching staff, by the coach in this case, to play another player," Martino said. "And he played this match because we saw him working very well over the course of this week."
On sending the home crowd off with a win, Martino was blunt. "We couldn't leave this season without winning the last game at home," he said. "We owed it to ourselves, we owed it to the fans."
He also put the onus on his three Designated Players. "We need to demand more of our three DPs," Martino said, "because the response they have to give us is tonight's, when all three were decisive in the match."
Looking ahead, Martino said he expects winter window moves to be minimal after the heavy turnover in January and during the World Cup break, with a winger the likely target. Asked about rumors he could leave, he said there was no chance unless the club fired him, and that he would be back in Atlanta around January 14 or 15.
Asked what he takes from 2026, Martino pointed to the growth of the last four or five matches, including the first half against Inter Miami.
"We needed something to hold on to," he said. "There is somewhere to start seeing the light at the end of the road."
Next up for Atlanta United (9-18-6, 33 points) is to continue the positive play, carrying the momentum into the 2027 Sprint Season, with the season finale on Decision Day in New Jersey against the Red Bulls.
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