Atlanta United ‘would’ve blown the roof off’ Mercedes-Benz Stadium

Xande Silva, bare-chested and defiant, stood like a statue, absorbing the noise while radiating confidence.

Silva earned his pic for posterity because a few seconds earlier, his right-footed shot with a minute left in the match ensured Atlanta United’s 2-1 win over Inter Miami on Saturday.

As Silva peeled away from his teammates to find a spot to strike a pose, many in the announced attendance of 68,455 threw up their hands, threw clear plastic cups, threw whatever they had in jubilation.

There will be a decisive third match on Nov. 9 in the best-of-three series against the greatest team in MLS history. Atlanta United has a chance to do something that maybe only themselves thought possible back on Decision Day when it needed a unique combination of events to even make the postseason.

“We go step by step,” Silva said. “I’m not going to talk now, so we’re just going to do our job. We’re going to keep training every day.”

ExploreXande Silva stunner carries Atlanta United to win against Inter Miami

The second match wasn’t anything like the first, a 2-1 Miami win that could have been a much more severe beating if not for Brad Guzan’s personal playoff-high nine saves.

Atlanta United players were admittedly exhausted in that match. It was their third road match in seven days.

After they returned to Atlanta Saturday morning and caught up on their rest, interim manager Rob Valentino and his staff devised a deliberate approach to training for Game 2. They re-scouted Miami’s patterns of play and how Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba were used. Suarez scored the first goal and Alba the third in the first match.

Atlanta United didn’t shut the trio down in Game 2, but they did limit them to seven shots, one on goal, and five chances created, compared to 14 shots, seven on goal, and 12 chances created in the first.

The only goal Miami scored came from a mistake by goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

“You just never know what kind of match you’re going to get in terms of where their quality is going to come from and what you really must shut down,” Valentino said. “Ultimately, as the match started to play out, I thought in what we could control, we did a pretty good job. We were composed, the goal happens, and then from there they rebounded really well at halftime. I know it’s not the way I thought it would go, but I wouldn’t take it any other way.”

To keeps it going in the decisive third game will require scoring more goals, Guzan joked. Derrick Williams, who scored Atlanta United’s first goal with a diving header, offered a more practical preview.

“I think we have to play like we did tonight, being patient on the ball,” he said. “We kept the ball in our half a lot better, going side to side, just trying to tire them out a bit. I think we need to definitely do that down in Miami, be clinical with our chances again and try to keep them quiet.”

Atlanta United can’t play a whole Game 3 like it did late in Game 2, when it had 11 players near its own 18-yard box trying to keep Miami from scoring its second goal. It would not be sustainable. Atlanta United was able to break that pressure a couple of times, finally succeeding with Silva’s goal. As the ball soared into the net, cameras panned to Arthur Blank’s box where President Garth Lagerwey could be seen hugging Josh Blank and Arthur Blank raising his arms in celebration, just like most in the crowd.

ExploreHere’s what you should know about Atlanta United vs. Miami

“When Xande scored, man, I said this earlier, but thankfully for Arthur, the roof was open,” midfielder Dax McCarty said. “If it was closed, it would’ve blown the roof off this place. That’s how loud it was. I mean, just incredible.”

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Atlanta United’s 2024 schedule

Feb. 24 Columbus 1, Atlanta United 0

March 9 Atlanta United 4, New England 1

March 17 Atlanta United 2, Orlando 0

March 23 Toronto 2, Atlanta United 0

March 31 Atlanta United 3, Chicago 0

April 6 Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 1

April 14 Atlanta United 2, Philadelphia 2

April 20 Cincinnati 2, Atlanta United 1

April 27 Atlanta United 1, Chicago 1

May 4 Minnesota 2, Atlanta United 1

May 7 Atlanta United 3, Charlotte Independence 0 in U.S. Open Cup