Red Bulls ripped apart by Atlanta in first leg

ATLANTA >> Josef Martinez, Franco Escobar and Hector Villalba scored and Atlanta United blew out the Supporters’ Shieldwinning Red Bulls 3-0 on Sunday in the opening leg of the Eastern Conference final.

Atlanta gave itself a huge edge heading into the second leg Thursday night in Harrison, New Jersey. The winner of the two-game, cumulative-goals series will host the MLS Cup final Dec. 8 against either Portland or Sporting Kansas City.

Before a crowd of 70,016 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, United defeated the Red Bulls for the first time in franchise history after three losses and a draw in their previous meetings. Atlanta also gave itself a bit of redemption after losing the Supporters’ Shield to New York on the final day of the regular season.

A matchup between the two best teams in MLS was a onesided affair. Atlanta dominated much of the game and could have won by an even bigger margin. While a New York goal was waved off after a video review and goalkeeper Brad Guzan made a big save in the closing minutes, this game was played mostly in the Red Bulls’ end of the field.

After controlling play from the opening whistle, Atlanta finally broke through in the 32nd minute.

Of course, it was Martinez who got the honors .

Jeff Larentowicz set up the play with a towering pass into the penalty area toward the Golden Boot winner and MVP finalist, who set an MLS scoring record with 31 goals during the regular season. Martinez wound up with the ball between two defenders after Tim Parker missed an attempted header, settling it with his chest and blasting a leftfooted shot inside the far post that left keeper Luis Robles with no chance.