Atlanta United 2 Hits Four Against Inter Miami II

Starting Lineup

Inter Miami CF II came to Athens winless in 23 matches and left with another loss when Atlanta United 2 put 4 on the board, including three during a 12-minute second-half burst.

In contrast, José Silva’s team had a large number of first-team players available. Jayden Hibbert, Matthew Edwards, Luke Brennan, Will Reilly, Dominik Chong Qui and Adrian Gill were among six first-team-contracted players in the starting lineup. Cameron Dunbar, who scored in Thursday’s closed-door friendly, wore the captain’s armband, while Arif Kovac led the line with 12 goals already this season.

Atlanta had beaten Toronto FC II 1-0 the previous week, but Silva wanted more consistency from the press after his team lost some of its aggression in the second half. Against Miami, that pressure eventually overwhelmed the visitors, especially after three halftime substitutions gave Atlanta fresh legs.

1st Half

Miami reached Atlanta’s box first, forcing Jayden Hibbert into an early save. Atlanta answered through a Mohamed Cisset header from a corner, before Miami came back and Sloan Morrison pulled an effort wide. The match opened into a quick exchange of attacks at both ends.

Matias Acevedo had another shot blocked, Mateo Saja struck a defender with the rebound, and Hibbert gathered. Atlanta came back through Dominik Chong Qui and Cameron Dunbar, while Luke Brennan pushed higher and helped keep Miami pinned around its own area.

The pressure finally broke through in the 20th minute. Arif Kovac had two shots blocked, but Miami could not clear the resulting corner. Cisset recovered the ball and found Dunbar open on the left.

Dunbar drove towards the end line and cut the ball through the crowded area. Kovac flicked it across the six-yard box with his heel, and Daniel Chica arrived from the right to finish first time past Matias Marin.

Chica’s goal settled Atlanta, which began spending longer stretches around Miami’s box.

Matthew Edwards nearly helped produce a second in the 27th minute, overlapping down the right and cutting the ball back for Dunbar. Marin got down to push the shot away, then kept Miami within one again when Chica met a corner with a driven header.

Miami finally broke out near halftime when Theo Vorenkamp raced into the right channel, but Will Reilly stayed with him and Matthew Edwards arrived to complete the tackle.

Edwards stopped another transition in stoppage time and took the first yellow card of the match. Atlanta carried a 1-0 lead into halftime.

2nd Half

José Silva made three changes at halftime, replacing Matthew Edwards, Will Reilly and Luke Brennan with Matthew Senanou, Andrew Jardines and Enzo Dovlo.

Dovlo needed just six minutes to make an impact. He picked up a loose ball on the right wing, cut inside and rolled it across to Ignacio Suarez-Couri. Suarez-Couri met the pass in stride and placed his shot into the upper-right corner for his first goal of the season.

Two minutes later, Chica intercepted a pass inside Atlanta’s half and sent the ball forward to Suarez-Couri. Suarez-Couri brought it down with his chest, then played Jardines into space on the right side of the box. Jardines drove towards the end line and cut the ball back across goal. Hall stretched to stop the pass from reaching Kovac, but redirected it into his own net in the 53rd minute.

Atlanta had scored twice in two minutes, both after forcing Miami into mistakes. Miami struggled to settle. Atlanta weren’t content and continued pressing for another.

The fourth arrived in the 62nd minute. Suarez-Couri floated a pass over Miami’s back line towards Dovlo. Dovlo collected the loose ball, drew Matias Marin away from goal and squared for Kovac to finish into the empty net.

Atlanta did not take its foot off the pedal, and the Five Stripes continued looking for a fifth.

At the same time, Atlanta’s defensive pressure began to weaken. Miami found more space as the back line started to look heavy-legged.

Despite trailing by four, Miami kept fighting. Its late pressure forced consecutive saves from Hibbert before Flores scored in the 86th minute. Miami then created two more chances in stoppage time, but Hibbert stopped both to preserve the 4-1 win.

Closing Thoughts

Atlanta finished with 23 shots, nine on target and 11 corners. Seventeen attempts came from inside the penalty area. Miami completed more passes and posted slightly better passing accuracy, but Atlanta reached dangerous areas far more often.

Dovlo supplied the spark. His first two professional assists came within 11 minutes of entering, and his pressure helped force Miami into mistakes.

Chica continued his unexpected scoring run. Both of his goals over the past two matches have come from open play and given Atlanta the lead. He nearly added another Saturday, forcing Marin into a save with a driven header.

Kovac’s numbers kept climbing. His backheel created Chica’s opener, and his 62nd-minute finish gave him a goal and an assist. He now has 13 goals and 16 total goal contributions this season.

Suarez-Couri’s first goal of the season was only part of his second-half influence. He controlled Chica’s forward pass and sent Jardines into the box before the own goal, then floated the pass over Miami’s back line that led to Kovac’s finish. He did not receive an assist on either play, but he was central to all three goals after halftime.

Hibbert lost the clean sheet to a strike he had little chance of reaching, but his five saves prevented Miami from making the closing minutes uncomfortable. His two stops in quick succession during the second half came as Atlanta’s back line began showing the effects of the heat and workload.

The result moved Atlanta to 9-5-3 and strengthened its place in the Eastern Conference playoff race. The Five Stripes have never reached the MLS NEXT Pro postseason. With back-to-back home wins and an attack that produced goals from a center back, a midfielder, a striker and an own goal forced by pressure, that possibility is beginning to feel less distant.