ATLANTA — Next stop: New York ... again.
On Sunday, Atlanta United took care of business in the Eastern Conference semifinals, knocking off New York City FC (3-1) and advancing through the MLS Playoffs for the first time in franchise history.
And as their reward, United gets a crack at the New York City Red Bulls–the same club which stole the Supporters Shield from United on the final day of the regular season.
The Sunday scoring launched from a typical source, albeit in an unusual manner.
At the 23rd minute, Franco Escobar got tackled while pursuing the ball in the scoring zone, eliciting a penalty call from the officials.
This opened the door for a Josef Martinez penalty kick.
His response: Martinez bedazzled the NYCFC goalkeeper with a fast-slow fake-out ... resulting in an easy goal on the right side of the net.
Nineteen minutes later, Atlanta's Miguel Almiron posted one of the prettiest goals of the postseason, bending a perfectly placed free kick around the defenders and past the NYCFC goalkeeper on the high side.
The whole scene was reminiscent of David Beckham's free-kick magic from years ago. The only tangible difference: Almiron spun greatness with his left foot, while operating from a straight-ahead line.
And for the nightcap goal (83rd minute), Martinez broke free from the desperate NYCFC defenders, creating a 1-on-1 opportunity with the goalkeeper; and sure enough, Martinez had little difficulty depositing the ball into the net.
The final tally, regarding aggregate goals: Atlanta 4, NYCFC 1
WHEN DOES UNITED PLAY NEXT?
United will next suit up on Nov. 25 (two Sundays from now) for the Eastern Conference finals.
Here's the schedule:
LEG 1: New York @ Atlanta (11/25)
LEG 2: Atlanta @ New York (11/29)
The rules for this two-game series will mirror that of the Eastern semifinals round: Short of a sweep, the winner will be determined by aggregate goals ... with the next tiebreaker involving "road" goals.
Atlanta United vs. NYCFC
WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF MERCEDES-BENZ STADIUM HOSTING THE MLS CUP?
Still pretty good.
It's a simple proposition here: If United advances to the MLS final (Dec. 8) ... it would automatically host the championship round–regardless of which team comes out of the West–due to collecting more points during the regular season.
IS UNITED A CHAMPIONSHIP FAVORITE AMONG THE BETTING CROWD?
Absolutely.
Citing VegasInsider.com's most recent update, United holds the best odds of capturing the MLS Cup title–at 14-5.
Among the remaining teams, here's the full menu of betting options:
Atlanta (14/5)
New York Red Bulls (3/1)
Sporting Kansas City (8/1)
Seattle Sounders (14/1)
