Atlanta United 2 earned a shootout victory over Inter Miami CF II Sunday night at Fifth Third Bank Stadium after the match ended in a 3-3 draw. Noah Cobb, Nick Firmino and Kofi Twumasi each scored to help Atlanta United 2 come back from two-goal deficit in the second half to tie the game and earn the extra point in a penalty shootout. Despite the resilient performance, ATL UTD 2 was eliminated from playoff contention.
Miami got out to an early lead through Lawson Sunderland in the third minute. After a long buildup from the back, Nykolas Sessock received the ball inside the left edge of the 18-yard-box on a perfectly chipped ball from Alejandro Flores. Sessock headed a pass to Sunderland at the back post for Miami's team captain to power in the goal into the roof of the net.
After the goal, Atlanta took control of possession and fired off six of the next eight shots. However, Miami earned a free kick just outside the box when Chris Gloster was called for a hand ball in the 34th minute. Flores' free kick ricocheted off the crossbar and fell to Tyler Hall in front of goal for an easy tap in for Miami.
Atlanta answered with a goal of their own seven minutes later. The home side earned a foul in the 42nd minute just outside Miami's final third where Toni Tiente sent in a cross to the center of the box for Cobb. The Homegrown center back rose above his defender and headed in his second goal of the season for ATL UTD 2 while Tiente added third assist of season.
Miami quickly regained their two-goal advantage in the 44th minute with Sunderland's second goal of the evening. The play began with Sessock receiving a ball on an overlapping run into the left side of the box and cutting a pass back in front of goal for Sunderland who one-timed his shot past the diving Clement Diop in goal.
In the 68th minute, Firmino headed in his 16th goal of the season. The play began with Erik Centeno receiving a ball on the right wing and quickly curling in a cross for Firmino making a run at the far post. Firmino perfectly placed his header into the side net leaving no chance for Cole Jensen. It was Centeno's second assist of the season.
Twumasi found the equalizer in the 81st minute. Derrick Etienne Jr. gained possession on the left wing and played Twumasi in the middle of the field where the team’s captain found space and perfectly curled in his first goal of the season into the bottom right corner.
Atlanta had a couple of shots on goal before the final whistle, but both teams remained tied at three with a penalty shootout to determine who would get the extra point. In the shootout, Diop made the only save on Miami's first attempt to earn Atlanta the 5-3 shootout victory and extra point at home.
ATL UTD 2 returns to action Sunday, Sept. 24 when it travels to Historic Crew Stadium to face Columbus Crew 2 for its last game of the regular season. (2:00 p.m. ET, Apple TV - MLS Season Pass). Some ATL UTD 2 matches are available with an MLS Season Pass subscription, located on the Apple TV app while the remainder of matches are streamed live on MLSNEXTPro.com.
Match Summary
Stats
Shots: 24-11 Atlanta
Shots on target: 12-4 Atlanta
Corner kicks: 6-4 Atlanta
Fouls Committed: 12-5 Atlanta
xG: 1.97 - 1.84 Atlanta
Possession: 50-50
Passing accuracy: 81-77 Atlanta
Scoring
MIA - Lawson Sunderland (Sessock) 3'
MIA - Tyler Hall 35'
ATL - Noah Cobb (Tiente) 42'
MIA - Lawson Sunderland (Sessock) 44'
ATL - Nick Firmino (Centeno) 68'
ATL - Kofi Twumasi (Etienne) 81'
Disciplinary
ATL - Matías Gallardo 🟨 50'
Notes
- Derrick Etienne Jr. made his Atlanta United 2 debut
- Noah Cobb scored his second goal of the season for ATL UTD 2
- Toni Tiente added his third assist of the season
- Nick Firmino scored his 16th goal of the year and extended Atlanta United 2's single season scoring record
- Erik Centeno added his second assist of the season
- Kofi Twumasi scored his first goal of the season
- Derrick Etienne Jr. added his first assist for Atlanta United 2
- With the shootout win, Atlanta United 2 is eliminated from playoff contention.
Shootout Results
ATL - Nick Firmino (goal)
MIA - Cameron Johnson (saved)
ATL - Karim Tmimi (goal)
MIA - Lawson Sunderland (goal)
ATL - Derrick Etienne Jr. (goal)
MIA - Nykolas Sessock (goal)
ATL - Matías Gallardo (goal)
MIA - Farid Sar-Sar (goal)
ATL - Fuad Adeniyi (goal)
