US OPEN CUP: Atlanta Advances with 2-0 Win at Charlotte
- Forrest Wimberly
- 29 minutes ago
- 2 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
Atlanta United scored a goal in each half to advance past Charlotte FC 2-0 in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Round of 16 match played Tuesday night in the Charlotte suburbs. Alexey Miranchuk and Cooper Sanchez scored the Atlanta goals to see the team into the quarterfinals for the third time in franchise history including 2024 and the Open Cup championship season of 2019.
Atlanta and Charlotte both started a rotated lineup due to a heavy congestion of fixtures leading into the World Cup break but it was Atlanta from the opening whistle with the more aggressive approach to the match. Charlotte looked out of sync and struggled on the ball to keep possession and breakdown the highly organized Atlanta defensive block. The stray passes, mis-timed runs, and lack of cutting attacking edge plagued the hosts all evening as they just couldn’t put the ball into dangerous areas in front of the Atlanta net.
The Atlanta pressure and possession paid off in the 22nd minute as Alexey Miranchuk was slipped a ball into his feet just at the top of the area, where he lofted the ball up and over the Charlotte keeper into the top left corner for the 1-0 lead.
The goal had been coming in the run of play and Atlanta was unlucky not to tack on a couple of extra goals as the first half ended 1-0 to the visitors at the break. The ball circulation, speed of play, and purpose in attack was evident in the quality chances Atlanta was creating around the Charlotte penalty area.
Charlotte tried to climb back into the match to open the second half, but Atlanta weathered the pressure and then resumed controlling the tempo and patterns of play after the hour mark. Atlanta’s midfield pressure and aggressive press paid off again in the 71st minute as Cooper Sanchez pressured a Charlotte defender into a mistake inside the Charlotte area. Sanchez was quickest to pounce on the loose ball between the recovering defender and the scrambling keeper to deposit the ball into the empty net for the 2-0 advantage.
The match ended 2-0 to Atlanta as Charlotte never found their way into the attack as Atlanta brought in numerous high-profile subs like Amador, Hernandez, Muyumba, and Latte Lath to see the match to full time. Jayden Hibbert went all 90 minutes in the Atlanta net earning the shutout victory.
Atlanta now will face rivals Orlando City SC away from home on May 19 or 20. If victorious, they will play away to the winner of NYCFC vs. Columbus Crew in September, and if winners again, they would host the Open Cup final in October.
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