Atlanta United debuts at glitzy new home with 3-0 win over Dallas
ATLANTA — The Atlanta United finally moved into their glitzy new home. It was worth the wait. Another boisterous, sellout crowd. Their first victory in more than seven weeks. A thoroughly dominating performance.
Josef Martinez, Leandro Gonzalez Pirez and Greg Garza scored Sunday for the MLS expansion team, which thrilled the packed house of 45,314 with a 3-0 rout of FC Dallas in its debut at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“Everything about this stadium is world class,” goalkeeper Brad Guzan said. “For us to be able to call this place home, we’re pretty lucky.”
United was initially supposed to begin the season at the $1.5 billion stadium it shares with the NFL Falcons, but construction delays pushed back the opening three times. Atlanta was forced to play its first nine home matches at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium, and two other games were rescheduled.
The quirky scheduling resulted
in United (11-8-6) having only nine home matches before Sunday’s contest, at least three less than every other team in the league. Since the team’s last home game on July 29, a 1-1 draw with Orlando, it had played just three matches — two draws and a loss on the road.
The victory was United’s first since a 1-0 triumph at Orlando on July 21.
Nevertheless, Atlanta is tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference and, having played fewer games than any other team, in prime position to make a run to the playoffs in its initial season.
One thing didn’t change with the midseason move to a new venue.
Even with the remnants of Hurricane Irma expected to bring high winds and drenching rain
to the Atlanta area and much of the city announcing plans to shut down, that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of United fans. Every available seat was filled for a team that already was leading Major League Soccer in attendance at 46,318 per game, on pace to break the record of 44,247 set by perennial leader Seattle two years ago.
They could have drawn even more to what was essentially their second home opener of the season, but red, black and gold curtains blocked off the upper deck to provide a more intimate atmosphere in a facility that can seat more than 75,000. United does plan to open the upper deck for at least two games.
“I don’t think there’s any comparison to any other team in MLS. In my opinion, they’re the best fans in this league,” Garza said. “They put on a show for us once more. Thanks goodness we were able to put on a show for them.”