Atlanta United 3, Toronto FC 1: Almirón and Miranchuk close the home season
A win in the final home match ended a six-game winless run at home and officially eliminated Toronto from playoff contention.
Atlanta United ended a six-game home winless run in its final home match of the season, beating Toronto FC 3-1 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday and eliminating the visitors from playoff contention, the Associated Press reports.
How the goals came
Miguel Almirón opened the scoring in the 22nd minute after a one-two with Alexey Miranchuk, according to AP and the club's own match report. Cooper Sanchez doubled the lead in the 40th minute. Per Atlanta's report, Almirón dribbled to the end line and pulled the ball back for Sanchez, who finished first time into the bottom corner with his left foot.
Miranchuk added the third in the 51st minute, AP says, tapping in a rebound after a long shot from Almirón came back off the woodwork. Lewis Morgan, a second-half substitute, pulled one back for Toronto in the 79th minute.
The club's account adds some texture to the early going: Atlanta had a Breel Embolo goal ruled out for offside in the ninth minute, and Lucas Hoyos saved a Theo Corbeanu shot in the fifth. Atlanta finished with eight shots on target, per the club.
Milestones
Sanchez's goal was his first in MLS. The club notes he became the fourth Atlanta player to score a regular-season goal before turning 19, joining Caleb Wiley, George Bello and Brandon Vázquez. Homegrown defender Matt Edwards reached 50 appearances in all competitions, which the club says only four other Homegrown players have done.
What it means
For Toronto, the result is a harder ending to the season than their recent form suggested. AP reports the club was eliminated from playoff contention for the sixth straight season despite earning points in four of its last five league matches. Toronto finish with a 9-12-12 record in AP's account, and have not won at Mercedes-Benz Stadium since October 2017, going 0-5-5 there since.
Atlanta, at 9-18-6 according to AP, will not be part of the postseason either, but the win closes out their home schedule on a positive note after the winless stretch.
Both sides have one match remaining. Atlanta visits the New York Red Bulls on Saturday, while Toronto travels to Philadelphia.